The Beauty and the Narcoleptic
by Ganzyyy
Summary: Jirou meets a young girl who captures his attention, but is his desire to meet her again pushed away by her apparent love of Fuji Shuusuke? Or is there more to that relationship than meets the eye? Jirou/OC but a lot of Fuji! I love him!
1. I Came To Watch Tennis

Sleep, sleep, sleep

Eyes tightly closed,

A little smile on your cheeks,

Feeling the warm sensations

Of the pure and precious sleep

- Jerine James

A young girl walked through a park slowly. She took in the beauty of the trees as she went. The leaves and branches caused shadows to dance across the grass around her. She smiled softly. The girl was quite the odd sight though. Unlike most, she had a fool head of dirty blonde hair that, if let down, would fall to her middle back. She had light brown eyes that almost looked golden and a few freckles on her cheeks. She wore normal clothes: a dark green sun dress, tan leggings, and dark brown flats. Her hair was tied up in a high ponytail, but a few strands of her hair still found their way to get into her face.

As she walked, she looked up through the trees to see patches of light blue sky and the white clouds. A soft breeze blew past her. She closed her eyes and took in the soft breeze as it played with the flow of her dress and moved her hair around slightly. She smiled brightly as the trees moved allowing the warmth of the sun to fall upon her face. She looked up into the sunlight and picked up her pace slightly.

Currently, she was on her way to the tennis courts. Since she was a student of Hyotei, she had heard many people talking about the first round of the Kanto Regionals being against Seigaku. She didn't know exactly when the games would start, but she figured if she arrived early enough it would give her time to find the correct courts.

She wasn't going to the games because she knew the regulars. In fact, she only knew a couple of tennis players out of the whole team, but she wasn't sure if they were regulars or not. She was just a big fan of tennis. She enjoyed watching a good game, and from what she heard from those in her school, it was going to be a good match.

She had wanted to learn more about the team that she would be watching, but unfortunately there weren't many people that she could ask. She had moved back to the area at the beginning of the school year, and she didn't know many people in her classes or school in general. Of course it didn't help that her family didn't have much money. Her parents had wanted her to get a good education and talked her into taking the entrance exam to Hyotei. She was accepted on a scholarship. Not many people talked to her, but she really didn't mind all that much. It was easier to keep a low profile.

On her way to the courts, she heard the sound of someone snoring. She frowned at the thought. If someone was sleeping outside like this, they could catch a cold. She followed the sound to a boy sleeping on the ground next to a tree. He slept with his knees bent up off the ground and his arms crossed behind his head.

She was surprised that he looked to be about her age. He wore what looked to be a tennis uniform and he was also wearing a back pack of some sort with a tennis racket attached to it. The jacket was white and bluish gray while the pants were a darker color. She thought it was the Hyotei uniform, but she wasn't sure. However, the one thing that stood out the most was his orange colored messy hair.

She bent down next to him and nudged his shoulder. "Hey." She said to him. He shifted slightly, but made no attempt to wake up. "Hey." She said louder and shook him harder. This time he opened his eyes to reveal amber brown orbs. "You shouldn't sleep here." She told him, but he just stared at her. "Are you okay?" She asked, but he simply yawned and closed his eyes again. She huffed in an attempt to calm her annoyance. "Fine, sleep and get a cold. See if I care." She stood quickly and continued on her walk toward the tennis courts.

As she walked toward what she thought were the courts, she realized that she seemed to be lost. She frowned. She tried to think where she should go. It was all because she wanted to help the sleeping boy. She continued to walk around until she heard the sound of cheers. She smiled. She was finally walking in the right direction. She could hear the crowds yelling for Hyotei. It was so loud and made her feel excited.

She was getting closer to the courts and her smile widened. Something caught her eye to her left. Two boys were talking and walking in the same direction. One had short brown hair, gray eyes, and a small scar on the right side of his forehead. The other had short brown hair on the sides of his head, but longer hair on the top that looked combed to the left. He also had brown eyes, but she thought he looked a bit odd. They were both wearing their school uniform.

The girl noticed the one with shorter hair right away. She smiled brightly. "Yuuta!" She said happily.

Yuuta looked away from his friend and to the girl. She was walking toward him and Yanagisawa. He looked at her confused, but then smiled also. "Hikari!" He said equally happy. He ran up to her and hugged her tightly. "What are you doing here?" He asked confused. He hadn't seen her in almost three years. "I see you haven't grown much." He said when he noticed how she barely reached his shoulder.

The girl, now known as Hikari, frowned deeply and glared at Yuuta. "Baka!" She yelled punching him in the stomach causing him to double over slightly. "Is that anyway to talk to someone who's older than you?" She questioned.

Yuuta laughed nervously. He had forgotten how much she hated people bringing up her height. "Sorry…" He mumbled when he caught his breath. At least she looked well. "What are you doing here?" He asked again.

Hikari smiled softly. "I came to watch tennis."

Her answer was so simple but it confused him. Ever since a few years ago she hadn't even gone close to tennis. He remembered that Syusuke was playing. "Who are you here to watch?" He asked.

"I'm watching Hyotei." Yuuta gave Hikari an extremely confused look. "That's the school I'm going to." She shrugged. "Everyone says they are very good so I came to look for myself." She stated.

"They're playing my brother today…" Yuuta mentioned.

"Oh! Syusuke's playing!" She said excitedly. "Let's go!" She said trying to pull him toward the tennis courts, but failed due to her short stature and Yuuta pulling back. She hadn't seen Syusuke play in a long time. She was curious to see how he had improved.

Before Yuuta could complain, Yanagisawa cleared his throat. Yuuta saw his senpai giving him a weird look. He opened his mouth to introduce Hikari, but she decided to speak first. "Yuuta, who's the creepy duck looking guy?" She asked seriously.

"Hey!" Yanagisawa yelled at her while Yuuta just stared at her. She was glaring at Yanagisawa and he was even returning the glare.

"This is Yanagisawa-senpai." Yuuta said motioning to his teammate. "He's my teammate at St. Rudolph." He explained.

"Why did you go to the same school as Syusuke?" She asked but didn't wait for him to answer when she saw his face darken. She then let go of his arm and walked in front of Yanagisawa. "Nice to meet you. My name is Fuji Hikari." She stated. "Thanks for taking care of my little cousin!" She said with a bright smile.

Yuuta groaned. "You're the one who's little." She turned around and kicked him in the shin. "Ow! Hey!" He glared at her.

"Let's go." She stated and walked toward the courts.

"That's… your cousin…?" Yanagisawa asked amazed. Her personality was a bit off. At one minute she was kind, but the next she was punching Yuuta and yelling at him.

"Ah…" Yuuta said with a slight smile. "When she played tennis, that's when her aggressive behavior would show up, but now it looks like she's struggling to control herself." He laughed slightly.

"She doesn't play anymore, dane?"

Yuuta shook his head. "She hurt her leg in an accident and hasn't touched a tennis racket since." Hikari waited for Yanagisawa and Yuuta to catch up before she walked over. She didn't want to walk by herself. "What's wrong?" He asked, but Hikari just shook her head. She didn't want to tell him that she was suddenly feeling nervous.

As they walked over to the court, Hikari was able to pick out Syusuke first. She looked at the score and noticed that it was already tied. "But it's not over yet!" Hikari's attention was brought to Seigaku's side. She watched as a player with brown hair and eyes held the Seigaku flag in the air. "Wow…" She mumbled. She could tell how heavy it was.

Everyone was amazed at Kawamura's power. Even Hyotei's side was surprised. "Hey hey! It's bad dane…" Yanagisawa said and Hikari looked at him confused.

"Oh, St. Rudolph!" The freshman said. Yanagisawa waved at them.

Fuji Syusuke seemed happy. "Yuuta! You came to cheer me on!" He said happily.

Yuuta looked embarrassed. A slight blush touched his face. "That's not it…" Hikari laughed at him.

"Nice, Yuuta." She said and elbowed him in the side.

"Shut it, Hikari."

"Hikari?" Syusuke asked. His blue eyes were surprised. Hikari waved at him happily and Syusuke smiled at her brightly.

Yanagisawa started walking down toward Kawamura. "But… That is some incredible power dane!" He looked at the flag. He grabbed onto the pole. "Is this heavy?" He asked. Kawamura let go of the flag and Yanagisawa fell over due to the weight of the flag.

He struggled with it until Kawamura took the flag back. "Are you okay?" He asked the St. Rudolph player.

"To be able to lift something so heavy…" He said with a surprised face. "As expected of Seigaku… They're as powerful as usual dane."

"Power, eh?" Atobe asked. "Kabaji! Jirou is still sleeping… Wake him up!" He ordered Kabaji. Jirou Akutagawa was sleeping on the bench behind them. Hikari noticed it was the boy who was sleeping next to the tree earlier. So he was a Hyotei player, she thought as she walked down with Yuuta toward the Seigaku players, but stayed beside Yuuta.

"Yes." Kabaji said. He easily lifted Jirou up off the ground by the back of his jersey. Everyone even Hyotei was amazed.

Hikari stared wide eyed. "Is that even normal…?" She whispered.

"The one he's holding is the senior, Jirou Akutagawa." Yanagisawa said. "The opponent who beat Yuuta in 15 minutes dane…"

"You don't need to make an introduction for him!" Yuuta said embarrassed. Hikari looked at Yuuta and Yanagisawa surprised. She looked at the sleeping boy, but she couldn't see how he could beat Yuuta that quickly.

Jirou woke up and saw the ground far away from him. He looked up to see Kabaji holding him up. "What?" He asked confused.

"Yes." Kabaji said and lifted Jirou straight up in the air.

"Hey… wait!" Jirou yelled as he began to flail around. "Put me down! Hey!" Jirou yelled trying to get down from Kabaji's grasp.

"It's fine, Kabaji." Atobe said. He seemed almost bored.

"Yes." Kabaji said and put Jirou down who ended up falling on his butt.

Jirou looked up at Kabaji. "As usual, incredible power, huh?"

This was going to become a game of power, Hikari thought as she stood with Yuuta. The play style didn't really bother her, but she didn't like what the game was turning into. "Kawamura-san is gambling his arm…" She mumbled when he started using the one handed Hadoukyuu.

"You're right." Yuuta said watching the match.

The game ended up being considered null due to both players being unable to play. Hikari sighed. She could see the strain that both players were putting their arms through. From what she could see, neither of them had any permanent damage to their arms. She wasn't sure about Kabaji from where she was standing, but Kawamura's hand has definitely bleeding… She didn't like seeing people getting hurt.

"Is he alright?" Yuuta asked Hikari knowing how good her eyes were.

Hikari nodded. "From here, it doesn't look like any muscles were damaged. Bones are harder to for me to consider, but they seem fine." She smiled. "Now it's Syusuke's turn."

"Aniki…" Yuuta whispered slightly.

"Mr. Little Brother." Yanagisawa said. "It's finally your older brother's turn, dane." Yuuta frowned and put Yanagisawa in a headlock. "You're worried… What the heck are you doing dane?"

"It's okay to be worried." Hikari said. Yuuta stopped hurting his friend and started focusing. Syusuke was ready for his match, but his opponent, Akutagawa Jirou was still sleeping on the side. His teammates woke him up. Jirou yawned as he tried to wake up. When the game was about to start, Jirou still looked asleep. "This is going to be a good game." She said. "Go Syusuke!" She yelled loudly catching everyone's attention.

The match started with Fuji using his underhand serve. The serve that seems to disappear… it was quite scary… She watched as Akutagawa went to return it, but seemed to vanish. However, her eyes followed the ball easily. It actually sliced so hard that it just seemed to vanish. Hikari smiled. He's taking this seriously. Hikari snorted as she tried to control her laughter.

"What are you laughing at?" Yuuta asked, but Hikari could tell that he was still surprised at the serve.

"That." She said pointing to Hyotei's player who seemed overly excited. He even ran off the court, but now he was actually awake.

Jirou was great when it came to serve and volley. He had good eye hand coordination to even stop Syusuke from hitting it toward his feet for a little. However, Syusuke kept him under control and even used his third counter, Hakugei. Hikari felt like she was in a trance watching them play.

"Aniki…" Yuuta whispered to himself. "Hey Echizen." He called out breaking her trance. Echizen looked back at him. "You told me to set my sights higher. My final goal is still my brother!" He declared.

Echizen turned back around. "That's fine. Whatever…"

"Yuuta…" Hikari whispered amazed.

In the end, Syusuke ended up winning 6-1. Hikari could tell that Jirou still had a lot of room to grow. As for Syusuke, he had gotten a lot stronger than she last saw him, but he didn't show his full strength even though he won…

Syusuke looked over at Yuuta, but Yuuta turned his back on him. Hikari was about to yell at him, but she saw the smile on his face. A soft smile appeared on her face as well. "Good game Syusuke." She said for Yuuta.

"Thanks." Syusuke said smiling at Hikari also.

Hikari looked over at Jirou to see him smiling. She was surprised to see that he was actually excited. He was an interesting person. She turned to Yuuta. "I don't think your brother tried as hard as he could." She whispered so that only Yuuta could hear. He looked at her surprised but she just smiled brightly. "Next match the captains are playing." She said excitedly. "It's going to be a good match." She smiled. She looked over at Syusuke.

"If you want to go talk to him, go." Yuuta said. Hikari smiled and went to go stand next to Syusuke.


	2. He's Being A Fool

Rewritten! I've changed my ways... I think. From now on I'll be going along the lines of the anime. It seemed more realistic. Any questions, just ask. I take all forms of criticism so don't be shy. Even if you rip apart my story, I won't mind. Well I will at first, but sometimes you need tough criticism to get you on the right path! So review please and thank you very much for putting up with me!

I Do Not Own Prince of Tennis! But I do own Hikari :) Hehe

* * *

Sleep, sleep, sleep

Forgetting insane things of the mixed world outside

Relax my little one, feel the gentle breeze

Do not worry about tomorrow, do not weep

Wake up fresh in the morn with a recuperated mind

Fresh and blessed with a wonderful sleep

By: Jerine James

Hikari stood beside Fuji. "You played a good game." She said as she watched people moving around them. She noticed a few different people from different schools. She had seen them in the newspaper. They were here to scout both teams.

"Thanks." He said glancing at the surrounding people also. The atmosphere was getting heavy.

"But…" She paused in her thought. "You didn't give it your all." She stated. Syusuke opened his eyes slightly to look at her, but he didn't say anything in reply. "You can't fool these eyes." She said and then she pointed to her eyes.

Syusuke laughed. "That is true. Your vision is better than the average person." Hikari smiled. "But I did play quite hard." He said seriously.

Hikari frowned slightly. "You have a lot of potential still." She said turning toward him slightly. "But… maybe you just don't recognize it." Syusuke looked at her confused, but ignored it when Tezuka and Atobe prepared to play. "Ah, the game's starting!" She said happily.

The game had been going on for quite some time. Hikari kept her mind and eyes focused on Tezuka. Everyone now knew about his elbow. Hikari frowned just thinking back to the story their vice captain had told. She didn't like hearing stories about people being purposely hurt. Hikari lightly touched her left leg in thought. Someone hurting another person…

"This is bad…" Hikari mumbled to herself. She had noticed something earlier in the game. She had thought Tezuka was in complete control, but now she thought differently. Atobe… that guy was holding back. He's trying to draw out the game as long as he can, she thought. Tezuka wasn't showing it much, but she could see the pressure he was putting on his shoulder from being careful of his elbow. "If this continues…" She whispered. He might not be able to finish this game… She could feel Syusuke glancing at her.

"Atobe is making a long game on purpose." He stated.

"Eh, Atobe is making the match long on purpose?" The vice captain asked. "Why is he doing that?"

He watched Tezuka seriously. "He wants to destroy Tezuka's arm in the match." Everyone seemed startled. Hikari could feel Yuuta shifted to stare at his brother. She didn't need to look at him. She could see the strain on Tezuka's shoulder as clear as day.

Hikari glared at the Hyoutei player. Was he really planning on trying to destroy Tezuka's arm? Was he just pushing the limit until Tezuka's shoulder couldn't last anymore? She growled slightly as she clenched her fists. "That bastard…" She hissed as her knuckles turned white.

"You're kidding me, right?" The purple eyed boy asked. "Why doesn't he just end it?"

"You're taking Atobe too lightly." Syusuke declared. "Like Tezuka, he is also at a national level."

"This is bad." Their vice captain said.

"Yeah, even Tezuka will show holes if he hurries himself." The one with glasses said. "He won't let that pass."

"Captain!" The purple eyed one yelled.

With Tezuka as he was now, Hikari knew Atobe could easily beat him if he went all out. "He's holding back…" She cursed. Just because you have an ability to see people's weaknesses doesn't mean you use it to destroy your enemy's body in a game.

"Tezuka, maybe you're…" The one with glasses began.

"T… This is…" Yuuta began.

"Yuuta, this is what a serious match means." Syusuke said and Hikari nodded. She knew how worried his teammates were.

"I can't believe he chose a long match." The one with glasses stated.

Hikari closed her eyes sadly. She could see the determination in his eyes. He was not going to give in. Does he not care about his arm? She wondered if his decision to win for his team was smarter than keeping his arm intact. This match was almost too much to watch.

Hikari frowned. It was 6-5 with Seigaku winning. This isn't right, she thought. No matter how she looked at it, Tezuka's arm should be finished by now. She was surprised he was hanging on so well. She wondered just how strong this guy really was.

"That's about it." The one with glasses said and closed his book. Hikari figured he used data in his tennis.

"What are you talking about, Inui?" The red head yelled. "Tezuka is trying so hard!"

"Don't misunderstand me." He responded. "I meant that it's pointless for me to take anymore data."

"Pointless to take anymore data?" The vice captain asked.

"There's no use for anymore data now!" The one wearing a bandana yelled.

"In other words… It depends on determination from now on…" The purple eyed boy said.

"That's right…" Inui said.

"Geez… don't say something that ambiguous." The red head said.

"To say the truth…" Syusuke began. "The one who wanted this to happen from the beginning… is that over-confident Atobe… But…"

"But?" The vice captain asked.

"He is the captain of Hyotei after all." Syusuke continued. "He's definitely going to have his comeback somehow…"

"The result of the game is still unclear." Hikari said causing everyone to look at her and Syusuke to look at her cautiously. He saw the way she was looking at Tezuka.

The last game began. "Tezuka is challenging his opponent." Hikari nodded, but to use the Tezuka Zone and his drop shot. His arm won't last, she thought. She hadn't even heard everyone around her talking. They all thought the game was over.

"No…" She said as he tossed the ball up in the air for the final point. Syusuke looked at her confused. Her eyes were sad. "I was right…" Her voice was equally sad. He dropped his racket and grabbed his left shoulder. She closed her eyes as he fell to his knees. She held herself closely as the regulars, minus the freshman sitting on the bench, ran out to their captain.

"Don't come!" He yelled at them. They stopped running and watched him. "Turn back." He demanded. "The match hasn't ended yet." He picked up his racket and stood. He walked over to the bench holding his shoulder. Everyone returned to where they were before.

Hikari was taking deep breaths trying to relax. She could practically feel his pain. Hikari tugged on Syusuke's shirt. "If he continues… he may never be able to play tennis again." She said and everyone looked at her worried. They saw how serious she was.

"Hikari…" Fuji whispered. He turned to his captain. "Tezuka! It'd be dangerous if you keep playing!" He wasn't going to take Hikari's statement lightly.

"Also, with your arm's condition…" Inui began. "The probability of you winning against Atobe is exceptionally low." Tezuka didn't answer. He simply flexed his arm.

"Captain!" Momo yelled. "You're overdoing it!" Tezuka picked up his racket and began to move toward the court again despite his teammates begging him to stop.

Oishi stopped him. The two stared at each other. "Are you going to carry out the promise you made with Captain Yamato?" He asked. "The promise of opening a path for the club to go to the Nationals."

"We are going to the Nationals." He said.*

"Then do it." Oishi said.

"Seigaku!" Hikari turned around and saw Kawamura holding up the Seigaku flag. "Fight! Fight! Seigaku!" He yelled waving the flag. Their coach yelled at him slightly. Hikari still held onto Fuji's shirt.

Syusuke looked down at Hikari. He knew how good her eyesight was. She was similar to Atobe. She could find a person's weaknesses in her opponent's body due to her study and love of biology and anatomy. She would place the ball outside the player's range. But not once did she purposely test to see how long a person's body could last. "This isn't right…" She said as the game became tied. Syusuke held her hand tightly for reassurance.

Hikari's grip tightened as the game went into a tie breaker. "He's being a fool…" She whispered so that only Syusuke could hear her. Her light brown eyes watched Tezuka's body closely. She could see the strain of the muscles through his shirt. If he could have, he should have finished the match earlier.

His arm might not be able to handle a tie break. She turned to Fuji to see him watching the game with serious blue eyes. "Syusuke…" He looked down at her. "Will he make it alright?" Fuji didn't answer her, but held her hand tightly.

But it was obvious to everyone there. The man who usually showed no facial reaction… who could never be read by looking at his face… was now showing every emotion. The pain that he was feeling was playing out like a story on his face. Hikari could only focus on the game. Nothing else appealed to her.

"What kind of game is this?" Hikari said in awe. The tie breaker… It was now 35-35. Neither of them were giving into the other. She hadn't realized, but when the referee called out that Atobe won 7-6, she suddenly gasped for breath. She had been holding her breath watching that last play.

"Are you okay Hikari?" Fuji asked worriedly while everyone cheered loudly for both players.

"I'm fine…" She said keeping her worried eyes on Tezuka. There was still hope for his arm to be saved. She breathed in relief. She could see it now that he stopped playing. The muscles and tendons weren't as damaged as she thought, but he would still need a good amount of treatment. "I can breathe now."

Fuji smiled. "You came on a good day." He said with his opened blue eyes. "You'll get to see our freshman."

"Freshman?" She asked. She looked at the young boy. "You mean him?" She asked and Fuji nodded. "No way a little kid like that could be that good."

"Who are you to judge on a person's appearance?" Fuji asked with a slight smirk.

"That's not a safe thing to say to a person who can barely control her energy right now." She said. Her hands were slightly shaking with anticipation.

"You're right." Fuji said. "Sorry." Hikari nodded acceptance.

The next matched began and Hikari was amazed. As she watched the match unfold she couldn't help but feel the energy that Echizen was playing with. It gave her goose bumps and her body began to shake with anticipation. "He's playing with so much tension…" She said in awe as she grabbed the wall in front of her. The lefty was in complete control of the game that Hiyoshi had no chance in beating him. "This game… it's amazing!" She yelled happily.

Fuji laughed at her excitement. He was also in awe of Echizen. To think that he had that kind of energy stored within him from just watching a couple of their games. Tezuka's game probably intensified the energy like it had for Hikari. Fuji could see the energy flowing in her eyes. But unlike Echizen, she had nowhere to release the energy.

Finally… the game ended with Echizen as the winner. Hikari jumped up and yelled happily. She had come to cheer for her school, but ended up rooting for her cousin's school instead. She hugged Syusuke tightly with all her energy. She didn't know what to do with it. Seigaku had won a very impressive match against a powerful school. Both teams were impressive.

"That was amazing!" She shouted at her cousin who simply laughed at her antics.

"Oh yeah… Fuji, who's this?" The red headed tennis player finally asked. He was looking at her with bright blue eyes that made her feel slightly uncomfortable.

"This is Fuji Hikari, my cousin." Fuji introduced.

Everyone had listened in when Fuji answered the question. Actually, everyone had been quite interested in the girl who appeared with Yuuta and attached herself to Fuji. Everyone stared at her in disbelief. Hikari suddenly felt extremely shy and stepped slightly behind Fuji. "Why's everyone looking at me like that?" She asked.

The guy with square glasses answered. "The probability of Fuji having a cousin like this is…. 23%." He said and everyone continued to stare at her as if she were lying about who she was.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" She yelled angrily and Fuji just laughed at her.

Hikari met everyone on the Seigaku team. They were quite nice. She looked back over at the opposing team. Hikari had made Syusuke tell her the names of the Hyotei team also. She was curious about them. They seemed like nice people even though they were obnoxious. Of all of them, Jirou seemed like the best. She liked his play style and how much he enjoyed tennis. As she looked over, she thought she saw Jirou staring at her curiously, but instead of finding out she turned toward the courts.

"Hikari…" She looked over at Syusuke. "Shall we go?" He asked. She nodded and walked between him and Yuuta. "Yuuta, are you eating home tonight?" Syusuke asked his brother.

"I heard Auntie is making your favorite." Hikari added.

Hikari saw a light blush appear on Yuuta's face and she smiled. "I guess so…" He tried to act like he didn't care, but Hikari could tell otherwise. "Are you coming with us?" Yuuta looked at Hikari.

Hikari smiled brightly. "Yes." She said. "I've missed my favorite cousins."

"Hikari…" Syusuke said with a slight laugh. "We are your only cousins."

Hikari shrugged. "So?" She asked with a raised eyebrow causing Syusuke to laugh and Yuuta to shake his head.

They walked quietly toward the front of the park. Hikari smiled softly to herself and glanced at the two Fuji brothers now and then. She was glad she came back home. "Hikari…" Syusuke said quietly. "I thought you were living in America…" It was a statement, but it came out more like a question.

Hikari laughed. "I was, but we moved back at the beginning of the school here." She explained. "I tried to come visit you and Yuuta, but you were both busy with tennis." She then turned to Yuuta. "And you!" She punched him in the arm. "You're living in a dorm! How am I supposed to see you?" She yelled.

Yuuta laughed nervously. "Well… I guess I'll just have to come home more often for dinner…"

"Good." She stated, and kept up her tough façade. Inside she was celebrating. She didn't know what had happened to the two brothers when she moved away before middle school… but she definitely didn't like it. They used to be so close, but Yuuta was pushing Syusuke away.

Syusuke was smiling. "So how have you been?" He asked. "Many things can change in a matter of three years."

"I'm good." She smiled softly. "I've been taking care of myself."

"Where are you going to school?"

"She's going to Hyotei." Yuuta butted in.

"Hyotei?" Syusuke asked. Hikari didn't like the way he looked at her.

"She was supposed to be cheering for them today." Yuuta explained, but then he draped his arm over her shoulders though it caused him to lean down somewhat. "But she decided to cheer for you instead." He laughed.

Hikari laughed with him. "Guilty." She said holding up a peace sign causing both of them laughed harder.

Fuji chuckled as well. "And your leg?" He asked glancing at her left leg.

"It… hasn't changed…" She said sadly. Yuuta's arm tightened slightly around her shoulders.

"I see…" He replied. "I'm sorry Hikari…" He said earnestly. She simply shrugged it off.

It was quiet for some time until Yuuta spoke up. "Well I'm starving. Let's go home." Hikari could tell he was trying to change the subject, but she was happy that he did. He let go of her shoulders and grabbed her wrist and started dragging her away.

"Come on Syusuke!" Hikari called behind her as she jogged slowly next to Yuuta. Syusuke shook his head as a chuckle passed his lips. He quietly increased his pace to catch up to his brother and cousin.

*I don't really know if he actually says it or he just thinks it. I changed the story to go along with the anime and I couldn't really tell, but I figured it would be better to have him say it.


	3. He's Like Sleepy From Snow White

**Okay Guys! This is Chapter 3 and I fixed it... I think. Let me know what you think! P.S. If you haven't noticed I have changed the first 2 chapters so please check those out too!**

* * *

After your laughter like thunder  
After your skin like coffee and cream  
After it takes our bodies into the night  
After we've come to the extreme

I want to lay down on your shoulder  
Just inside your arm  
I want to listen to your heart beat  
And your breathing on and on  
I want to lay down on your shoulder  
Surrender to your peace  
And go to sleep

And when we've gone a million miles  
Made true our dreams with sweat and bone  
After we've built it up with our bare hands  
Made strong a place we can call home

And when the light in my eye is fading  
When running water becomes too deep  
Finally angel turn my fire to dust  
And when my soul's no longer mine to keep

I want to lay down on your shoulder  
Just inside your arm  
I want to listen to your heartbeat  
And your breathing on and on  
I want to lay down on your shoulder  
Surrender to your peace  
And just go to sleep

- Melissa Etheridge

It had been a couple days since his match with Fuji Syusuke and, for some reason, Jirou couldn't get that girl's face out of his head. Her bright smile and those big light brown eyes and her long dirty blonde hair… He quickly cut himself off. It had been like that for a while now. He would keep remembering what she looked like and her image would appear in his mind. He couldn't stop it and he didn't know why. The only thing that she did was wake him up, but in that short time he had thought it was a dream. But then he had seen her with the Fuji brothers after the match and he knew that she was real and not simply his imagination.

He sighed as he fought the urge to fall asleep in class. It was just so boring… what was he supposed to do? His mind always seemed to offer the option of imagining what the girl looked like some more as a way to pass the time, but he kept forcing the idea away. He had to focus on the task at hand, but it felt like a war was going on in his mind. That girl just wouldn't go away, and no matter what he did he couldn't focus. It was aggravating.

He kept trying to give himself excuses to stop trying to picture her face. The number one reason that kept popping up in his head was what he saw after Hiyoshi had lost to Echizen. He remembered her happily smiling and hugging Fuji after Seigaku had won. She seemed so happy with them. And why wouldn't she? Fuji had won a match with him and Seigaku defeated Hoytei. Jirou frowned in his seat as the feeling of losing came back to him. At first he had been happy to play against a strong opponent, but the feeling of disappointment had settled in later.

The fact that he was thinking so much about a girl who might even be taken by another person also disappointed him… For the only thing he could think was that she was dating Fuji Syusuke. It was just so annoying that he found her so interesting. But he had seen her and Fuji hug and hold hands. They obviously had an intimate relationship. He couldn't understand why the girl seemed so special. He had met her once, didn't know her name, but there was something about her that just made him want to know more.

Jirou sighed as the bell rang. He was getting tired of classes. He stood from his seat, left the classroom and began to walk to his locker. As he made his way through the crowds of students, something caught his eye. He looked to his left and saw the back of a blonde haired girl. Without a thought, Jirou was already running up the stairs that she had already ascended, but as soon as he made his way through the crowds and clingy girls, she was gone.

He felt defeated. It may have been small… but there was a chance that it could have been her. Of course he didn't even know what school she went to. It seemed very slim that she actually went to Hyotei. She had been cheering for Seigaku through the whole match including his own game against Fuji. He mentally groaned as the battle in his mind continued without end. But now he would never really know. Maybe it was better than him making a fool of himself chasing after a girl he thought he saw. Before he knew, the bell had rung and the hallways were empty. Jirou walked up more stairs until he reached the roof. He leaned against the fence and just stared out at the area, but soon his eyes began to shut.

Jirou pushed away from the fence and placed his bag on the floor. He lied down on the floor, used his bag as a pillow and curled up in a ball. "Just a short nap…" He slurred as his mind drifted into unconsciousness. Maybe it was because he kept thinking about her all day… but that girl found her way into his dream. She wore a white dress and the way her long blonde hair swirled around her made her look like an angel. Her light brown eyes seemed to smile as she laughed at Jirou. But… like all good dreams, you have to wake up eventually.

His eyes slowly opened to see a clear blue sky. The world surrounding him was so bright that it made him squint slightly. He yawned and desperately tried to rub the sleep from his eyes. He sat up and looked around. He frowned when he realized he was still alone and looked down at his hands. "Even if she is with Fuji, I really want to see her again…" He mumbled as he leaned back against the fence and watched a lone cloud peacefully float over his head and into the distance. "It's so peaceful today…"

But then Jirou realized he didn't know what time it was. He looked down at his watch and smiled brightly. "Lunch Time!" He cheered as he ran down the steps dodging crowds of students and fan girls as he went. He ran to his locker, grabbed his bento and went back to the roof to eat lunch. He wanted to enjoy the good weather while it lasted. You never know when it could change.

He ate his lunch quickly. He hadn't realized how hungry he actually was until he started eating. When he was finished, he sighed and leaned against the fence once more. He felt very content until he heard the bell ring calling for his next class. It wasn't until then that he actually realized he had a couple more classes until he was free from the prison that was his classes. He would just have to put up with it until it was time for practice…

By the time Jirou made it to his last class of the day, he was exhausted. He dragged himself down the hallway and to his last class. He made his way to his desk and sat down with a sigh. He stared out the windows wishing that he was out there playing instead of being in class. He didn't want to be stuck in there. It was always boring. Nothing interested him. If he could just sleep and play tennis all day, his life would be perfect.

Once again, Jirou felt his eyes getting heavier and heavier. He tried to stay awake, but this class was just too long and too boring. English wasn't his best, but it wasn't his worst. It was just boring… Why did he have to know English? He didn't plan on going to America or anywhere any time soon. As his eyes closed, he thought he heard a familiar voice behind him ask someone, "Does he sleep all the time?"

"Who? Jirou-sama?" Came the voice a fan girl that Jirou knew all too well since she would never leave him alone… ever. There was a slight pause. "Of course, but he's so cute when he sleeps so he's allowed to." Jirou could just imagine the stars forming in the girl's eyes as he drifted closer and closer to sleep.

He heard a small chuckle. "He's like Sleepy from Snow White." And that's when he fell asleep. He could have thought he had heard that voice before, but he couldn't place his finger on it. In his short dream, he was playing tennis and the girl was watching the match. She was smiling with excitement. This time, however, she was watching him play and not the other team.

Jirou was smiling when he was woken up by the final bell. However, it took him a few minutes to get out of the room because his teacher had to lecture him about staying awake in class. He figured she just hadn't realized that Jirou was just too bored to stay awake.

He walked to his locker and put his things away. He looked at the time and realized that he still had time to take a nap though it was going to be short. He took off toward his hiding spot with a smile on his face. Jirou was finally free of classes… of his prison… On the way there, he tripped over something and went skidding to a stop. "Ow…" He groaned in pain as he rubbed his sore head. Jirou looked back to see what he tripped over. "No… way…" He said as he saw long dirty blonde hair. He suddenly felt nervous. She wasn't saying anything… had he hurt her?

He walked over to make sure she was okay, but she was more than fine. She was sleeping, and on top of that, it was the same girl who woke him up before his match. But was she really still sleeping after Jirou tripped over her? "How did she not wake up?" He questioned himself. He looked closely at her. "Well… at least she's still breathing…"

Her face scrunched up, and Jirou wondered if she was going to wake up. Should he leave? Wouldn't it be strange if he was standing here when she woke up? "How is she still sleeping?" He questioned himself quietly. Eventually her face relaxed and she continued to sleep peacefully. "You are very strange…" He murmured. Her lips turned up in a smile and for a few seconds Jirou was in a panic.

Her eyebrows creased again and suddenly she muttered. "No, mom… five more minutes…" She yawned and rolled over.

Jirou bit his bottom lip and held his breath. He didn't want to wake her up by laughing. He never actually watched anyone sleep before. He had always done the sleeping. He walked around her to look at her peaceful face again. He couldn't help but think that she looked a lot different from before. But he hadn't really gotten a good look at her. He smiled as she kept making faces in her sleep, and he just wondered if he did the same things as her when he was sleeping.

"Jirou!" Jirou looked up in the direction he heard his name. "Where are you? You're late! Again!" He knew right away that it was Shishido. He looked down when he heard the girl begin to mumble. He couldn't believe it. Was she really going to wake to someone yelling out, but not when he tripped over her? He didn't know what to do. He couldn't get caught standing there.

"Jirou!" Shishido yelled again and the girl's eyebrows furrowed deeper.

"Coming!" He yelled as he ran as fast as he could away from the girl.

When he was a good distance away, the girl woke up. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She thought she had heard Jirou Akutagawa, but as she looked around she realized that she was still alone. "Huh…" She mumbled to herself. "I guess it was just a dream…" She yawned as she stood up and stretched. She frowned as a light pain went through her back. "Why does my back hurt?" She wondered aloud, but she didn't take time to think about. "I have to get going or I'll be late."


	4. Honestly I'm Okay

**I Do Not Own Prince of Tennis!**

**Chapter 4 has been edited and hopefully to your enjoyment! Please let me know your honest opinion of it.**

**Thank you!**

* * *

When darkness awakens, my body settles gently into bed.  
The events of my day race rapidly in my thoughts as I close my eyes.  
Slowly, I am lulled into a peaceful sleep.

I hear vibrant music - so full of passion.  
I feel the warmth of the sun's rays that grace my presence.  
I see kind, adoring eyes gazing back into mine.

The air is full of happiness - so much laughter.  
Soft caresses are exchanged.  
At this moment, life could not by any more wonderful.

I have never felt so beautiful; as I do when I am with you.  
I have finally found the respect and acceptance that I have yearned for.  
I eagerly listen to inspirational dreams and goals  
and know that I want to be the one to be there  
when they are complete.

A thin line of love and friendship is crossed,  
and two single souls find a home to share eternity.

Birds begin to proudly serenade the morning dawn.  
Lonesome roads slowly progress into distinguished passageways.  
Light peeps through my windows and I awaken to a new day.  
I am ready to endure what the day has in store for me,  
because I know that I am a queen,  
and I know extraordinary love when I sleep

-Tanya W.

Hikari was still disappointed that hearing Jirou's voice was just a dream. She wanted to talk to him and get to know him. He seemed like such a happy person. After she stretched out her back from its soreness, she tried to walk but ended up catching herself on the tree. She leaned against the tree for support. Her left knee was stuck in a slightly bent position. It happened now and then if she didn't move it for a long time. "Alright…" She mumbled as she leaned against the tree. She placed both of her hands around her knee and pushed down as heard as she could. She felt a small 'pop' and sighed in relief. She could now bend her knee easily. But she still didn't understand why her back was sore. Maybe she slept wrong… She did sleep on the ground…

She began to walk toward the front of Hyotei as she took out her phone. She sighed as she looked at the time. "Maybe I should have set an alarm…" She mumbled. "I really am going to be late."

She shoved her phone in her bag and began to jog slightly, but her knee was too stiff to really run with any speed. She passed the tennis courts and paused slightly as a familiar head of orange hair caught her eye. His energy and smile as he played tennis really inspired Hikari. It made her feel like she could do anything. And above all else it seemed to radiate and give her energy. It made her feel happy. She wanted to stay longer and watch their practice, but she had somewhere she had to be and she took off at a slight jog toward the bus stop.

Hikari was completely out of breath, but she had finally made it to her destination: Seigaku. She looked down at her phone and smiled as she tried to control her wheezing. She still had some time to spare. As she walked into the school grounds, she was still breathing heavily. "Now I remember why I hated running so much…" She groaned as she dragged herself in the direction of the sound of tennis rackets colliding with tennis balls. Even though her body ached from the running, the beautiful Sakura trees brightened her spirits. She loved this school. It was so beautiful.

She finally reached the tennis courts and sat down with a sigh. It felt great to sit down. Her leg was starting to bother her. She looked at the tennis courts to see the regulars that she met still practicing. She had heard that Eiji and Oishi were amazing together, but Fuji told her that with Oishi's wrist hurt, Eiji will probably end up practicing with Momoshiro. Everyone was practicing hard. It must be because of Tezuka's match that caused him to hurt his shoulder. She frowned as she remembered the pain written on his face.

She looked around for the said captain, but noticed that he wasn't around. In fact, many of the regulars were missing. Oisihi, Tezuka, Echizen, Kaidou, and Momoshiro weren't at the practice. She frowned. The 3rd year players were present besides the captain and vice captain. She wondered if they were having some sort of meeting.

Fuji had explained to her that Tezuka had decided to leave for abroad in order to heal his shoulder. It would be a good idea to get a professional who worked specifically on sports injuries and rehabilitation to look at his elbow. Maybe when he returns, Seigaku would hold a bid to the Nationals. Hikari smiled at the thought. This team had a lot of promise. She had missed the two doubles matches, but she saw Fuji, Echizen, and Kawamura play. They had potential to be strong, especially Echizen and Fuji. It was exciting to think what the other players on this team could be capable of. The mere thought of it sent shivers up her spine.

Hikari had zoned out as she watched the tennis players practice in front of her. Out of habit, she tried to find everyone's weaknesses, but soon found it boring. She looked to the sky as attack plans flowed through her mind. "Hikari…" She looked down at the sound of her name. Fuji was standing there with his usual smiling face. "You were staring at the sky with your mouth open… again…" He didn't know why he was so surprised that she still kept her old habits.

"Oh…" She said slowly. She was still sifting through her thoughts. When her mind cleared completely, she looked behind him to see Eiji. She felt her face heat up in embarrassment. It wasn't just Eiji and Fuji that had seen her staring at the sky, but the whole team was looking at her like she was crazy. "Sorry…" She mumbled to the point where it was barely audible.

"Are you ready to go Hikari-chan?" Eiji asked. He had successfully ignored her weird behavior just moments before.

Hikari smiled brightly. "Yup." She said nodding her head. She liked Eiji's hyper personality. It seemed to be almost catchy. "Let's get going!" She exclaimed as she stood and stretched slightly.

"Are you coming over to my house today?" Fuji asked Hikari as the three of them started on their walk home.

Hikari nodded her head. "Mm… I want to see Auntie. Will Yuuta be there?"

Fuji was quiet for some time. "I believe so, but I never know anymore." Hikari could tell that Fuji was a little upset about how he and his brother were.

"Hm…" She said in thought. She hoped he would be there tonight. She didn't really get a chance to catch up with him when she saw him over the weekend. The matches had pretty much taken over all of her attention. Even when they walked home together, she didn't get to really talk to him like she wanted to.

"Neh, Hikari-chan?" Eiji asked after some time.

"Yes?" Hikari said looking at him.

"Have you ever played tennis before?" He asked. "If you are like Fuji, I bet you would be amazing, nya!"

Hikari felt her heart twist and ache. She thought she saw Fuji next to me become more rigid. At least his hand had grabbed hers tightly. She didn't want to show Eiji any sadness. "Well… I used to…" She trailed off. "But I decided to focus more on my classes instead of tennis. It was a difficult decision."

"I bet!" Eiji exclaimed. "I don't know what I would do without tennis!"

Hikari laughed, but somehow it sounded forced. "Oh, trust me, sometimes I don't even know what I should do!"

Eiji frowned slightly. "Well… this is where I leave. Bye Fujiko! Bye Hikari-chan!"

"Bye Eiji!" Hikari said happily.

"See you tomorrow Eiji." Fuji said as Hikari waved goodbye. When Eiji was out of sight, Hikari and Fuji continued to walk peacefully toward Fuji's house. It was almost silent before Fuji decided to talk again. "Hey, Hikari… are you okay?" He asked cautiously.

Hikari smiled up at him. He was always so protective of her. She gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. "I'm fine, Syusuke." She said. She only used his first name when she was really serious. At other times, she would just use variations of his name. "It isn't as hard as it used to be." And it was true. Tennis was always Hikari's passion. It was what had made her push her life forward. She loved competition and like Fuji, it would pull her aggressive nature to the surface… and help her reduce the energy that kept storing up within her from watching others play… When she played tennis, her kind nature would be repressed and she would look to destroy her opponent mentally.

"But I know how much it kills you to not be able to play anymore. You really loved tennis and you were really good." Fuji said. His usual smile seemed to vanish as he talked about Hikari's desire for tennis. It seemed like it killed him just as much as it bothered her.

"Eh… It's alright. Now I can watch you play all the time." She smiled as they continued to walk toward his home for dinner. When they arrived, they were met by Yuuta and Yumiko-chan. Hikari could tell that Yuuta was excited to be there even though he tried not to show it in front of everyone else.

Before Hikari left, Yuuta gave her the biggest hug and said, "Call me sometime Hikari. I missed my little cousin!" He said and laughed when she frowned.

"Height means nothing!" She practically growled and punched him lightly in the stomach. "I'm still older than you!" She yelled, but ended up laughing along with him. "I'll talk to you Yuuta. Good luck with tennis. I'll be cheering for you."

He smiled. "Ah, I'll be looking forward to it." But before she left, he called out to her. "Hikari…" She turned around to see his worried face. "Are you really okay?"

"Geeze…" She frowned. "What is with you and Syusuke always asking that question?" Yuuta frowned but Hikari smiled softly.

"Sorry…" He said. "I'm just worried. You didn't look okay watching Tezuka's match against Atobe…"

Hikari walked back and hugged him. "Yuuta… really… honestly… I'm okay."

"Alright." He said softly as he hugged her back.


	5. It Was My First Love

**I Do Not Own Prince of Tennis. I do own Hikari however.**

**Chapter 5 edited! Please let me know your thoughts :)**

* * *

Sleep  
Sleep precious  
Sleep my love

Sleep until nothing's left  
Sleep until the world is gone  
Sleep until it's cold  
Sleep until the world is black

Sh... don't speak  
You're too weak  
Just close those  
Tired sore eyes  
And sleep

Dream of a better world  
Dream of a bright future  
Dream of the perfect life  
Dream of what will never be

Sleep soundly  
Sleep peacefully  
Sleep deeply  
Sleep forever

Nothing can hurt you  
No one can get you  
You're safe now  
Just close your eyes  
And sleep

Sleep my love  
Sleep my sweet  
Sleep darling love  
Sleep

I'll be with you soon  
Wait for me  
Just sleep  
For now.

- Heather Bisset

Jirou was in a rush. He had skipped too many classes and Atobe was starting to get angry. If his grades weren't good and if he didn't attend class, he might have to stop being on the tennis team for a little bit. Jirou couldn't allow that to happen. He didn't know what he would do if he wasn't on the team.

He took a quick turn and ran straight into someone causing the both of them to fall to the floor. "Ow…" Jirou opened his eyes to see blonde hair. She was rubbing her back and she looked up at him with her brown eyes and Jirou completely lost his voice. "Sorry… Are you okay?" She asked him.

Jirou just stared. She was apologizing to him when he was the one that flew straight into her, but he couldn't speak. He tried to say sorry, but when he opened his mouth, nothing came out. She started to blush under his intense stare. It was making her feel uncomfortable. He was brought back to reality by the bell.

Her face froze and she quickly stood. "I'm so sorry Jirou-san!" She yelled as she ran down the hall and out of sight.

"Wait…" He mumbled to himself and sighed as he lugged himself to class. He sat there and waited as the boring class went by. He decided to stop taking notes from his fellow students and try to pay attention himself. It was difficult, but he was slowly getting there.

But he had seen the girl again. He smiled to himself as he continued to take notes. He was bummed that he couldn't sleep anymore, but he couldn't keep the smile from his face. He had to talk to her no matter what. He really wanted to know more about her. He was almost as excited as when he played Fuji Syusuke not long ago. When the bell rang, he stood and left the classroom… still with that goofy smile plastered on his face.

"Jirou?" Jirou turned around to see Oshitari Yuushi staring at him in slight amazement.

"Ah! Oshitari! What's up?" Jirou asked still smiling.

"You're not sleeping or skipping classes…?" Oshitari seemed to be a little worried about this. Usually, no matter what the case, Jirou would always be too bored in class, skip it, go sleep, and then get lectured by Atobe. But here he was, right in front of Oshitari, smiling as he exited his class.

"Nope!" Jirou said.

"Interesting…" Oshitari said with a sly smile and a raised eyebrow. "I'm curious to know who was able to change you like this Jirou."

Jirou didn't want anyone to know it was because of girl. In fact, he didn't even know what her name was. So he kept his reasoning simple. "No one changed me. I just don't want to lose tennis." He said.

Oshitari pulled him off to the side so no one would be near them. "You know you can't fool me. Love is written all over your face. Now… who is it?"

"It's no one… really." Jirou said slightly annoyed. He was so frustrated that he didn't even think about what came out of his mouth next. "I don't even know what her name is."

Oshitari's face showed triumph. He knew it. "Does she attend here?" He questioned more.

"Yes!" Jirou said smiling again.

"Well what does she look like?" Oshitari questioned trying to get more information out of Jirou.

With a bright smile, Jirou began to explain the girl to Oshitari. "She has blonde hair and brown eyes!" He began. Oshitari was stunned at how excited he was. He had never seen Jirou like this outside of tennis. "I think she has freckles on her cheeks, but I'm not sure. Oh, and she's actually quite short." Oshitari laughed causing Jirou to frown. "What?"

"Are you in love?" Oshitari said in awe.

"I am not in love!" Jirou yelled catching everyone's attention. "I have class to go to." He said seriously. He turned and walked down the hallway as everyone stared at him confused. Oshitari chuckled to himself as he walked in the other direction.

Jirou walked into his next class, but stopped short. In the desk behind his, sat the girl he'd wanted to talk to. She was always on his mind, but he had a feeling that if he could just have a normal conversation with her, then he could concentrate on more important things. He looked at the ground as he walked to his seat, but he could feel her eyes on him watching him as he moved to his seat. He could feel his face heating up as he sat down. He couldn't talk to her like this. He would make a fool of himself.

I have to say something to her… he thought in his head. He kept going over all the things that happened early. He had knocked her over without apologizing, but it was so hard to look into her eyes. They were sharp and it felt like she could see through him.

"Hey… Jirou-san?" He heard her voice coming from behind him. "Is your head okay?" She asked.

Jirou turned around slowly and looked into her brown eyes. He knew he was staring, but the intensity of her eyes kept him from looking away. "Jirou-san?" She asked again.

"Ah!" He exclaimed being pulled out of his trance. He noticed that she had a slight blush on her face from embarrassment. "Sorry… I'm okay." He said with a smile and her face broke out in a smile. "Are you okay?" He finally asked. "I didn't get to apologize… I'm sorry, it was my fault. I ran into you because I wasn't paying attention." He said though he sounded like he was rambling.

"It's fine." She said with a smile and slight laugh. "I have a hard head." She joked lightly and then pretended to knock on her head. Jirou smiled at her odd behavior. "Oh! My name is Fuji Hikari, by the way. I don't think I ever actually introduced myself when I sort of woke you up." She said slightly embarrassed. "You played very well by the way."

Jirou smiled slightly as he replied. "I'm glad you liked the match." He said. "It's too bad that I didn't win."

"But you looked like you were having so much fun." She said seriously. "And even I didn't know Syusuke had gotten that good. He's gotten so much stronger since the last time that I saw him. It's amazing…" She said trailing off.

"I'll definitely win next time though." He said and they both smiled at each other.

"I'll be looking forward to it." She said softly.

There was a slight pause in the conversation. "You really like tennis don't you?" He asked.

Hikari smiled softly and looked off to the side and out the window. "Ah… It was my first love." She practically whispered. There was a sad look in her eyes for a brief time.

"Would you like to come watch our practice after this class?" Jirou found himself asking. He felt slightly embarrassed about it, but if she loved tennis so much, he was sure she would enjoy watching them practice.

"Hm…" Hikari's smile vanished as she thought about it. "I'm supposed to go watch Fuji, but I can always go watch him another day." She said smiling again. "I'd like to come watch you play Jirou-san."

"Thanks, Fuji-san." He said relaxing slightly.

"Oh, you can just call me Hikari."

Her goofy smile made Jirou laugh a little. "Okay, Hikari-chan." He said as the teacher came in and he had to turn around. He was happy with how the conversation had gone. She was even going to come to his practice today. But not even that… her name was Fuji Hikari. She was related to Fuji Syusuke which meant they weren't together. And he was actually able to focus on his class for once.

Hikari happily took down her notes for class. She finally had an actual conversation with Jirou. "Hey, just because you talked to Jirou-sama once doesn't mean you can stare at him." The whisper came from the girl who sat next to her. Her name was Yumi, and throughout the whole conversation with Jirou, Hikari had had a difficult time ignoring the glare she was receiving from the girl. But she rolled her eyes in response. She was looking at the teacher, not Jirou.

"Sorry…" Hikari mumbled.

"And don't even think about trying to get close to Jirou-sama!" Her whisper became even harsher.

Hikari didn't like arguing with people, so she simply nodded in response and sunk in her seat a little bit. She didn't want to start problems with anyone, but she really wanted to get to know Jirou better. He seemed like a nice person to talk to. She didn't want the fangirls to control her movements or intentions, but maybe she should be more cautious with her approaches. Then she could still talk to him without them actually knowing. They can't tell me what to do, she thought seriously.


	6. Did You Like The Match?

**I do not own Prince of Tennis!**

**So this is chapter 6 of my edited story. The layout is pretty much the same as you've probably noticed. However, I think I'm doing a good job with Hikari right now. If you think otherwise, please let me know before I continue with my story! Currently editing chapter 9! I'm getting closer!**

**Oh! And a thank you to iamModoki! Glad you enjoy the 'The Beauty and the Narcoleptic' so far! And thank you to slacker4life, Niji95, and apandas327 for following :)**

* * *

Sleep, dearest, sleep beside the murmuring sea;  
Sleep, dearest, sleep, and bright dreams compass thee.  
My sleepless thoughts a guard of lave shall be  
Around thy couch and bid thee dream of me.  
Sleep, Bright Eyes, sleep.

Sleep, dearest, sleep, the slumber of the pure;  
Sleep, dearest, sleep, in angels' care secure.  
Evil itself thy beauty would allure  
To cease from ill and make thy joyance sure.  
Sleep, Bright Eyes, sleep.

Sleep, dearest, sleep; in slumber thou art mine;  
Sleep, dearest, sleep; our souls still intertwine.  
You radiant star that on thy couch doth shine  
Bears from my lips a kiss to lay on thine.  
Sleep, Bright Eyes, sleep.

- Arthur Weir

The bell finally sounded meaning classes were finally done for the day. Jirou practically jumped out of his seat. Classes were finally over and it was time to practice. He quickly packed his bag and turned to look at Hikari. She was smiling softly as she packed her own bag.

When she finished packing her bag, Jirou grabbed her hand. "Come on Hikari-chan!" He said urgently. Hikari's cheeks began to heat up at the sudden contact. "Let's go to practice." He said as he began to pull her toward the door. She glared slightly at his hand. So much for her not getting the fangirls to hate her…

He pulled her out of the classroom and down the hall. "Wait… Jirou-san…" She pleaded pulling against his grip. She had to go to her locker before she went to his practice. The only problem was that he wasn't listening. "Jirou!" She shouted finally getting his attention.

"Eh?" He asked stopping. He looked back at her. "What?"

She took the opportunity to remove her wrist from his hold. "I have to go to my locker." She said.

"Why?" He asked confused.

"I need to get some books for homework tonight." She said and Jirou frowned slightly at this. Hikari sighed. "I'll meet you at the tennis courts." She said with a soft smile causing Jirou's face to brighten up.

"Okay, I'll see you there then." Jirou said as he ran down the hallway and out of sight.

Hikari chuckled to herself. He was definitely a simple person. She couldn't believe he was so happy that she was going to see him practice. It wasn't even a game. She sighed slightly but still kept her soft smile as she walked over to her locker. When she reached her locker, she knelt down on the cool tile floor and began to place the books that were in her bag back in her locker. Then she searched for the books that she needed and put them in her bag. She finished and stood from the ground to close her locker, but something caught her eye. On the top shelf was a small folded piece of paper.

She picked it up out of curiosity and closed her locker. She looked at the paper while she walked toward the exit. The front of the paper had her name written on it. From the strokes of the pen, Hikari could tell that a girl had written it which made her cringe. She had feeling what was inside was not good, but she opened it anyway. It read: Fuji Hikari, how dare you try to seduce our Jirou-sama! You witch… if you continue your actions toward Jirou-sama, we will be forced to take action. This is a warning Fuji Hikari. It would do you well to listen.

Hikari just sighed as she read the last line in the paper. She had figured as much. She hadn't planned to be so open with Jirou. She just wanted to get to know him. She didn't love him and she was sure that Jirou didn't love her. They had just met. They only had one conversation. "This is ridiculous…" She mumbled to herself. She knew the note had to come from Yumi. She crumbled the paper up and threw it out as she walked out of the school and toward the crowded tennis courts.

The whole tennis team was in awe as Jirou ran out of the club house and started warming up for practice. For the first time since he played Atobe in a practice match, Jirou was the first one to the tennis courts. No one could understand what was happening. The team was having practice matches against each other, but Jirou wasn't going to play Atobe. Jirou had no reason to be excited… but no one questioned him… They were just happy that he was taking it seriously.

Oshitari smiled as he watched Jirou's happy expression. Since he had questioned Jirou earlier, he knew that the only thing that could make him like this was the girl Jirou had explained earlier. The only thing he could think of was that she would be watching him today. He had to admit, Oshitari was quite interested about this girl who could easily influence their Jirou so easily.

Atobe sat down on the bench beside the tennis courts. From this seat he could easily view all the matches that would be played. He looked around the court to see the usual crowd. He could easily distinguish between the scouts, the fans, and the fangirls. He liked this atmosphere. His prideful attitude fed off of the feeling of being the best. He looked at his regular members. "Oshitari will play Jirou. Ootori will play Kabaji. Shishido will play Hiyoshi and Gakuto will play the winner of that match. Ore-sama will watch and observe the games and evaluate where you stand."

"Hai!" Everyone shouted and began their matches.

Hikari made it just in time. She sat down just as the matches were beginning. Watching tennis was difficult for her, but when she watched Jirou play it was different. When faced with a difficult opponent, the competition made him happy and excited. That feeling rubbed off on her and she felt a small smile form on her lips. Maybe it was because Hikari could no longer play the love of her life. Maybe it was just his pure love for the game that caused Hikari to smile softly. It wasn't often that you found someone playing tennis just for the fun of it. Playing for fun instead of simply trying to win by any means necessary was difficult to come by.

Oshitari was having an extra hard time playing against Jirou. With Jirou extra excited, it made it more difficult to beat him. In the end, the final score was 6-4 with Jirou winning. Oshitari was stunned. He just stood there watching Jirou surprised. He was smiling brightly with excitement.

"Yes!" Jirou yelled. "I won!" Oshitari was in awe at the orange haired boy. "I beat Oshitari!"

Jirou paid no attention to Oshitari as he celebrated with himself. The other games were still going on and Oshitari was going to leave the celebrating Jirou to watch the other games, but something actually caught his attention. "I don't believe it." He said to himself as he began to walk toward the stands. "I never thought I would see you of all people here." He said to the blonde girl in front of him.

Jirou stopped celebrating when heard a slight laugh. He quickly turned to see Oshitari walking over to Hikari. She was smiling softly. "Hello, Yuushi-kun." She said quietly.

"I never expected to see you of all people here watching tennis." He said seriously to emphasize the point. "Doesn't it bother you?"

Her smile vanished shortly. "Hm…" She smiled as she glanced at Jirou. "Things change…" She mumbled.

Oshitari looked back to see where she was looking. His eyes fell upon Jirou who was looking at them with a confused expression. Oshitari smirked. "Jirou was talking about a girl with blonde hair and brown eyes, but I never expected it to be you." He said as Jirou began walking over.

Jirou felt overly embarrassed. He never wanted her to know about that. He knew he shouldn't have told him anything. Jirou watched as Hikari's cheeks turned a slight pink. Jirou quickened his pace so that he was beside Oshitari. He had an urge to intrude on their conversation. He didn't want to think it was jealousy, but Hikari had come to watch him and not Oshitari. "Hikari-chan, you came." He said with a smile.

Hikari's smile widened slightly. "Of course I did." She said and a giggle escaped her lips. "I told you in class and after that I was going to come to watch."

Jirou just shrugged. "Did you like the match?" He questioned.

Hikari's eyes brightened. "It was amazing! You're style of play is interesting… I like how you use your volleys during the game." She said and they both laughed together.

"Thanks." Jirou said gaining some self confidence. After a short pause, he turned the discussion toward another topic: Oshitari, who was watching the other matches instead of listening to their conversation. "I didn't know that you knew Oshitari…" He glanced at Oshitari who turned his head at the sound of his voice.

"Oh!" Hikari exclaimed. "Oshitari is in most of my classes." She explained. "He was the first person to befriend me. It made it easier for me to study here." She turned to look at Oshitari. "I always meant to thank you by the way."

"It was my pleasure." Oshitari said smiling.

"I see…" Jirou said with a yawn. "Hey Oshitari…" He was starting to feel sleepy from not taking naps all day. "Can we leave now that our game is done?"

"Ah… I believe so." Oshitari said. "We were only playing one match each except for either Shishido or Hiyoshi."

"Well I'm leaving then…" He said smiling again. "Come on Hikari-chan!" Jirou jumped over the fence that separated him and Hikari. He grabbed her wrist and started dragging her away from the courts.

Hikari let out a slight scream at the surprise. "Uh… bye Yuushi-kun…" She yelled out as she was being dragged away. She caught a glimpse of the angry Yumi as she was being dragged away. She sighed to herself as she tried to keep up with Jirou. This wasn't what she had in mind.

Oshitari laughed softly. He couldn't help but think that those two would be perfect for each other. He turned his attention back to the other matches that were still taking place. When playing tennis, his predictions were usually correct. In fact, they were almost one hundred percent correct. He glanced in the direction that Hikari and Jirou had gone. He really thought that Hikari could really use someone who loves tennis like Jirou does…

* * *

**Chapter 6 complete! Please let me know how I'm doing! Criticism of all kinds is welcomed. The good boosts my confidence and the bad pushes me to write better. So please review and thank you for reading my story. I hope you're enjoying it ;)**


	7. As Long As It's Hikari And Me

Hey guys! Long time no see! I had originally wanted to upload every Friday, but well college had other plans for me.

I didn't realize that I would actually have this much work to do this year.

And I'm behind on numerous homework assignments. (I still have to do Moral Theology, Parapsychology and Pseudoscience, History of Mexico, and the History and Systems of Psychology...) It's going to be a long night. Plus: I have lifting Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays at 6 am and practice every day and conditioning every day.

So as you can see. This leaves little room for updates :( And Fridays I just kind of... pass out in my bed. The life of a Division I college athlete...

Anyways... I feel as though I have been neglecting you guys. I sincerely apologize. That's why I'm taking a break to get this chapter out!

I'll do my best to update again soon!

P.S.: Thank you to:  
slacker4life for adding my story to your Alert!  
Fallen-Autumn-Leaves also add my story to the Alert thing  
Anna Snowfields for correcting my mistake :)  
hanonmm for favoriting the story  
and finally... Syahra for adding my story to your Alert  
If I missed anyone, I apologize.

Hikari and I thank you for your support!

* * *

Sleep, sleep lazy fool

You've fought to long  
And now you're free to tool  
Don't wake blind maiden

Sleep, sleep small child  
There are terrors to come  
You won't sleep forever  
Cause you'll never be done

Sleep, sleep little blossom  
Because that's all you can do  
Sleep, the sleep of dreamers  
And wake again a new

- Eric Andrew James

Jirou continued to pull Hikari away from the tennis courts. In fact, when she looked back, all she saw were trees. Everywhere was just trees and Hikari had no idea where they were going. It was a little nerve wracking to be dragged around like this. "Jirou-san!" Hikari yelled breathlessly. She hadn't ran this fast, this much, in a long time and it was starting to show. He didn't respond. "Where are we going?" She was really starting to get tired. She knew that if she kept running at this pace, her knee would eventually give out. Not many knew about her knee, and she really didn't want to have to talk about it now.

The only people that actually knew were Syusuke, Yuuta, Yumiko, and Oshitari. Oshitari found out because like all tennis players he knew the name Fuji. He took the liberty to look in the past to find out more about her. He eventually came across information on her accident. But she couldn't complain, that information was part of the reason they became such good friends.

"Jirou…" Hikari said breathlessly. She was starting to reach her limit and she could feel her legs getting weaker. Before she complained again, Jirou suddenly stopped causing Hikari to bump into him slightly. "Ah… Sorry…" She mumbled.

"Here we are!" Jirou said happily, but it slightly annoyed Hikari that he wasn't out of breath what so ever. Hikari bent over at the waist and put her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. Jirou turned to her with a bright smile. It was only then did Hikari notice just how tired he really was. His face was happy, but his eyes were exhausted. He frowned when he saw how tired Hikari was. "Are you okay?" Hikari could only nod. "I ran a little too fast didn't I?" He asked as he rubbed his head slightly.

"Just a little… but I'll be fine…" She said as she began to catch her breath. She stood straight and placed her hands on her hips. "So… where are we anyway?" She asked as her curiosity got the best of her.

Jirou just smiled as he stepped to the side and motioned to what was behind him. "Do you like it?" He asked.

Hikari's mouth dropped open in surprise. She had been in these trees numerous times to take naps after school, but she had never come across this place. It was a small clearing no more than twenty feet in diameter. There were trees and bushes that surrounded it. In the middle of the clearing was a smaller tree compared to the ones around it. Unlike the surrounding area, light touched the ground and grass was able to grow instead of just moss. There were even flowers growing around the lone tree. It was so simple yet filled with so much beauty. It made you feel relaxed with the scent of flowers that filled the air.

"It's so beautiful." She said in awe. She walked passed Jirou and into the clearing. "Where did you find this?" She asked looking back at Jirou.

Jirou shrugged. "When I was a first year, I skipped practice a lot and eventually found this place." Jirou explained. "It's pretty much my own little sanctuary." He seemed so proud of it. Hikari chuckled slightly. "What's so funny?" He asked as he walked into the clearing also.

Hikari waved her hands in front of her defensively. "Nothing!" She exclaimed. "But… do you really think that no one knows about such a pretty place like this except you?"

Jirou frowned and thought about it. "Well… I almost always come here to nap and I've never seen anyone else here. So I just figured that I was the only one to that knew about it."

"But you know someone could come here while you sleep." Hikari wondered. "You would never know if you are always asleep."

Jirou stared at her for a while contemplating it but ended up shrugging. "Mah! It doesn't really matter as long as no one says anything to me." He said as he walked over to the tree and sat down. He leaned against it and looked up at Hikari. "As long as it's just Hikari-chan and me then that's all the matters, right?" He was sporting one of the softest smiles Hikari had ever seen.

Hikari smiled back at him. She never felt so happy. She even had that feeling of butterflies in her stomach, and it took her all to keep her face from turning red. She had always had guy friends, but none of them had ever said anything so kind to her. It made her a little nervous. Jirou patted the spot next to him and Hikari nervously walked over and sat next to him.

Jirou looked at her with worried eyes. "Are you okay?" He asked confused when he saw the slight frown on Hikari's face. For once, Hikari didn't know how to answer. She had never felt so tongue tied. "If you're upset about something, we can go back." Hikari shook her head 'no' as she tried to clear her thoughts.

Jirou didn't say anything. He simply just waited for Hikari to speak again. "Thank you, Jirou-kun." Hikari looked up at him with a big smile and Jirou returned it with a soft smile of his own. She looked at the clearing around them. "Thank you for showing me this place. It's very nice." Hikari waited for him to respond, but nothing came. "Jirou-kun?" She asked. She went to turn to look at him, but his head fell on her shoulder. Hikari was confused until she heard the quiet snoring coming from him. She sighed and let him stay like that. She knew that he was very tired from not napping all day, and she figured that she should let him have a little nap before they walked back. It couldn't hurt.

She looked at all the flowers that were around them. They were sporadically placed around the clearing. She plucked a small blue flower and held it in front of her, taking in its scent. She knew that no one else knew about this place. If someone had planted them, they would have placed them in closer clumps and more arranged than this. It looked like Jirou really was the only person who knew about this little place. Who would have thought that a place like this would naturally come to be?

As she looked around the clearing, her eyes began to feel heavier. Now that she thought about it, she usually took a nap after classes were done. She was really starting to feel more and more tired. She yawned and rubbed her eyes. "Mm…" She mumbled. "Maybe just a short nap…" She closed her eyes and drifted off.

When Hikari finally fell asleep, her body shifted away from Jirou. However, his body weight ended up pushing her over. She fell on to her side and Jirou fell behind her. In his sleep, Jirou could feel Hikari's body and out of instinct he reached out to pull the warmth to him. In doing so, he ended up pulling Hikari to him and holding her tightly.

Half an hour passed and the two continued to sleep until Hikari's phone started to ring. Hikari continued to sleep through the annoying ring, but it stirred Jirou from his rest. His eyes were still half closed, and it was apparent that he was not quite awake yet. However, he picked up the phone that was lying next to Hikari on the grass and answered it.

"Hello?" He asked with a slightly slurred voice from sleeping.

"Hikari…?" The voice at the other end asked confused.

"No…" Jirou answered still with a slurred voice.

"Where is she?" The voice practically demanded.

"Right here…"

"Can I talk to her?"

"No she's sleeping right now…" Jirou said as he looked at the sleeping figure beside him and yawned. If he had been fully awake, he probably would have woken her up and moved away from her. However, in his half sleep state, everything seemed like dream.

"Who is this?" The person finally asked.

"This is Akutagawa Jirou…" He asked closing his eyes and leaning back on the ground. "Who are you?"

"Fuji Syusuke… Hikari's cousin…" Fuji said sighing. It was obvious that he was getting frustrated. "Can you please wake her up? I need to talk to her."

"No…" Jirou said frowning. "I'm sleeping…" He hit the end button on the phone and dropped it back in the grass. He rolled over and continued to sleep next to Hikari.

Fuji frowned at Jirou's last comment. He took the phone away from his ear and looked down at it. The screen read 'Call Ended.' His eyebrows furrowed as a sigh escaped his lips. He was slightly annoyed at what was going on. Hikari hadn't told him that she wasn't going to be at his practice, and he was starting to get worried. He looked up at the sky. At least she was with someone he knew… well someone he knew of. She should be fine if she was with Akutagawa. He seemed like a good person. The problem was that she was supposed to go home with him since Yuuta was coming home again.

He flipped open his phone again and redialed Hikari's number, but no one answered. He hung up and glanced at the time. "I guess I should go to Hyoutei and pick her up." He said to himself as he looked back up at the sky with a sigh. He couldn't have her walking around late by herself, so he started heading toward Hyoutei.

"Hey! Fujiko!" Fuji turned around to see Eiji running up to him with his arms flying everywhere. Fuji noticed that his face looked worried.

"What's wrong Eiji?" Fuji asked the red head who was out of breath.

"I'm fine." Eiji said blinking. "Are you okay?" Eiji asked regaining his breath. Fuji frowned at the question. "You seemed worried all through practice. I wanted to make sure everything was okay."

Fuji's smile returned as he chuckled at his friend. "I'm fine Eiji, really." He replied. "I was just a little worried about Hikari."

It was Eiji's turn to frown. "Are you heading home then?"

"A-ah…" Fuji answered trying to sound honest.

"But your house is in the other direction." Eiji noticed as they walked.

Fuji didn't think that Eiji would notice so fast, but he did. "Well… I have to go get Hikari." He tried to explain. "She's still at Hyoutei."

"Hoi! Hoi!" Eiji yelled excitedly. "Let's go get her then Fujiko!" He grabbed Fuji's arm and started to pull him along to the bus stop.

Fuji laughed at his hyperactive friend. He could tell the Eiji liked being around and talking to Hikari. It was quite obvious. Eiji had said that he liked how Hikari always seemed to take in everything around so she wouldn't miss anything. It was like she always looking for small details around the important and large things. Fuji smiled. Eiji was right. Hikari knew what it was like to lose something and never get it back. She wanted to remember everything and not take anything for granted.

* * *

Oh another P.S. so I guess it would be a P.S.S.? Today I literally just made a tumblr account specifically for my obsessions with Prince of Tennis and other animes. It will also be a good place to ask questions about the story or Hikari in general. :) Please come visit me! .com :D


	8. I Have To Go Home

**Well... it has been a while... again. But here is chapter 8! And like all the other time: I don't own PoT!**

**A quick thanks: The Creator of Worlds, creamfeathers, Linnea Farhen, ArtistInTraining, Ume Kanda  
^ Hikari and I appreciate the follows/favorites! Thanks for the support!**

* * *

To fling my arms wide  
In some place of the sun,  
To whirl and to dance  
Till the white day is done.  
Then rest at cool evening  
Beneath a tall tree  
While night comes on gently,  
Dark like me-  
That is my dream!

To fling my arms wide  
In the face of the sun,  
Dance! Whirl! Whirl!  
Till the quick day is done.  
Rest at pale evening...  
A tall, slim tree...  
Night coming tenderly  
Black like me.

- Langston Hughes

* * *

The sun shifted in the sky until the shade shifted away from Hikari's face. As the warm sun touched her face she opened her eyes slowly. She leaned up on her elbow, and rubbed the sleep from her eyes and yawned. She looked around the clearing and remembered the day's events, but she couldn't remember lying down on the ground. A low snore brought her to the attention of someone holding on to her waist. She looked down to see arms and when she turned over slightly, she saw that Jirou was still sleeping.

Hikari could feel her cheeks heating up and tried to free herself from Jirou's grasp. She tried to pry his arms off but he simply pulled her closer. Hikari waited until Jirou's arms loosened. She then slid her legs through Jirou's arms and sat down next to him. Without Hikari to hold onto, Jirou curled up slightly. She sighed and smiled as she looked up to the sky. It was colored orange. "Crap!" Hikari whispered harshly. She found her phone lying next to Jirou in the grass. When she flipped it open, she realized she had a missed call from Fuji. She closed out of the message and looked at the time. She turned to Jirou and nudged him. "Jirou!" She whispered loudly in his ear. "Wake up!"

Jirou opened his eyes and sat up to lean against the tree. He rubbed his eyes and looked at Hikari. "What time is it?" He asked looking around.

"It's time to leave." She said sadly. "I have to go home. It's getting late." She said as she stood up and stretched her legs. She popped her left knee as she stretched.

"Already?" Jirou asked still trying to wake up.

"Yes." Hikari said with a sigh. "Now let's go!" She said as she tried to pull him up, but he resisted.

"Fine…" Jirou said with yawn. He gave up and let Hikari help pull him to his feet. "You're actually quite strong." He said with more alertness. He hadn't put much effort into getting up on his own.

Hikari shrugged as they walked away from the clearing. "I used to play tennis with Syusuke when I was young." She explained. "I guess I'm still a little in shape."

Jirou nodded as they kept walking, but something caught his attention. "Your cousin…" Jirou began. "I think I talked to Fuji…"

"You did play him not long ago." Hikari answered.

"No… I thought it was a dream…" He said as he scratched his head in thought. "Maybe it was a dream."

Hikari raised an eyebrow at this. She knew that she had a missed call from her cousin, but she never checked the incoming calls. She quickly flipped open her phone and went to the call section. She had gotten two calls from Syusuke… one was a missed call and the other the conversation had lasted a couple of minutes. "Oh no…" She said stopping.

"What's wrong?" Jirou asked as he stifled a yawn. He turned to look at her worried face. "What?"

"I think you did talk to Syusuke." She said as she hit the redial button. As the phone rang, she looked at Jirou. "We have to get back soon…" She said in almost a panic.

"Do you care if we run again?" He asked as she waited for the phone to ring.

She shook her head 'no'. Finally Fuji answered the phone. "Hikari?" He asked worriedly. Hikari thought she could hear Eiji in the background. "Where are you? Are you okay?"

Fuji was about to continue rambling on questions, but Hikari quickly stepped in to silence him. "I'm fine Syusuke." She said and he knew that she was being serious. "I stayed to watch the Hyoutei team practice today." She explained.

"Why didn't you call?" He asked. Hikari could just picture the frown on her cousin's face, and she knew that he wasn't entirely angry, but he was definitely annoyed.

"I'm sorry." She apologized truthfully. "I never meant it to get this late."

"Are you at the tennis courts?" He questioned.

Hikari sighed. "No, but I'm heading back there right now." She answered, but she realized that Fuji must already be at Hyoutei. "Syusuke… where are you right now?" She asked as panic rippled through her. She knew that he wasn't too fond of the Hyoutei tennis team. She had never told him that she was friends with Oshitari, but in her past conversations with Yuuta, she learned that Fuji didn't particularly like him. She sighed as she waited for him to answer.

"I'm at Hyoutei's gates." He explained. "Eiji and I came to pick you up."

Jirou waited patiently for her to hang up the phone. "Okay." She said shakily. "Just stay there and I'll come to you." She said.

"I can't make any promises." Fuji said and hung up the phone.

"You have got to be kidding me…" She mumbled as she looked down at her phone. She looked up at Jirou and he could see how nervous she was. "We have to go right now." She demanded.

Jirou nodded and held out his hand for her to take. Hikari gulped as she took his hand. She was going to regret running like this twice in a day. But this was serious business. She didn't want Fuji and Eiji to start problems with Hyoutei's tennis team especially since they had just defeated Hyoutei. She had heard rumors that the two schools were rivals, and that many of them had similar styles that furthered the rivalry. Eiji was also involved with this type of rivalry with Gakuto, and Fuji with Oshitari.

Jirou smiled as he held on the Hikari's hand tightly. He turned and started jogging at a slower pace than what he had earlier that day. "Don't worry." He said. "We'll get back in less than five minutes." He said. Hikari frowned. If Fuji and Eiji were already at the front of Hyoutei, they would beat her to the tennis courts. She prayed that Fuji would actually listen to her and stay where she told him to.

Eiji watched as Fuji talked to Hikari on the phone. He could tell that Fuji was extremely worried about his cousin. On the way to Hyoutei, he had told Eiji that it wasn't like her not to call if she was going to be late or not going to come at all. He could hear the annoyance in Fuji's voice even though he was obviously trying to hide it from his cousin. Unfortunately, if Hikari and Fuji were as close as they claimed to be, this type of hiding would not work.

"Eiji and I came to pick you up." Fuji explained and Eiji looked over at him at the sound of his name. There was a slight pause in the conversation and Fuji frowned opening his eyes to show his blue orbs. Eiji raised an eyebrow. Something must be really bothering him… "I can't make any promises." He said seriously and hung up the phone.

"That's not a very nice way to respond to your cousin." Eiji said a little frustrated at his friend's antics. Fuji didn't say anything. "So what did Hikari say?" He finally asked.

"She told us to wait at the gate." Fuji said with a frown.

"Then let's just wait." Eiji said leaning against the brick wall that separated them from the large school. "She seems to be fine."

Fuji frowned. "I'm going to go find her." He said walking into the school yard and toward the tennis courts.

Eiji looked over to see his friend already making his way to the tennis courts. "Wait Fujiko!" Eiji yelled running after him. "Hikari-chan told us to wait!" Fuji didn't answer him and when he caught up, he could see how determined Fuji was to find Hikari. "Fine, but if we get into trouble… it's your fault."

Fuji didn't respond as they reached the tennis courts. There was still a large crowd around the tennis courts even though it seemed like the practice had just ended. Fuji and Eiji looked around for the blonde haired girl, but they couldn't find her anywhere. Fuji even tried looking for Akutagawa's orange hair since he was much taller than Hikari, but he still came up with nothing. Fuji sighed. He should have guessed that they weren't even at the tennis courts. It was too quiet on the phone for this many people to be around.

"I don't see her Fujiko…" Eiji said nervously.

"She's probably not even here." Fuji said in slight anger. "That's probably why she wanted us to wait."

They continued to look around until Fuji came face to face with Oshitari Yuushi. The two stared each other down. Eiji turned around and saw the two staring at each other. "What are you doing here, Fuji-san?" Oshitari questioned with hard eyes.

Fuji's stare did not falter as he answered. "I'm looking for my cousin, Fuji Hikari." Oshitari's eyebrows rose slightly. "Have you seen her?" Fuji did not want to talk to Oshitari for too long and he could feel Eiji's uneasiness beside him.

Oshitari sighed and turned to look out over the tennis courts. "I'm afraid I haven't seen her for awhile now." He moved his eyes to look at the two Seigaku players. "I'm surprised two of you came to escort her home."

"She's my cousin." Fuji said darkly.

"That girl can handle herself." Oshitari turned his head to look back Fuji. "She's not weak you know."

Fuji looked at him with his sharp eyes. "Hikari needs me." He said seriously. "You don't know her like I do." Eiji stood there completely confused. He had no idea what these two were talking about. The entire conversation had turned in a direction that Eiji was not expecting.

Oshitari looked somewhere behind the two other players. His expression turned bored as he shrugged lightly. "Maybe you're right." He said looking back at Fuji.

Fuji removed his glare from Oshitari and looked at Eiji with his closed eyes. "Come on Eiji, we can find Hikari without his help." They turned and began to walk away from Oshitari.

"Syusuke!" Fuji turned to the sound of his name. His eyes opened slightly as he saw Akutagawa and Hikari jogging toward them from the trees. Hikari let go of Jirou's hand and jogged a little faster toward him. Syusuke was surprised she was moving so quickly on her legs and closed his eyes to hide his shock. She ran up to him and bent over trying to catch her breath. "I'm so sorry." She apologized as she remained bent over. "I didn't mean to make you worry." Jirou came to a stop next to her as she apologized.

"It's fine." Fuji said but Hikari could still make out the annoyance in his voice.

She slightly glared at him and Fuji gave her a questioning look. "I told you to stay at the front gate." She said narrowing her eyes at him. "I always listen to you. Why couldn't you just wait like I told you to?" Unlike Fuji, Hikari allowed her voice to show how annoyed she was.

"You were taking too long." Fuji countered.

"Fine." Hikari huffed and closed her eyes.

"Hikari-chan's okay!" Eiji yelled as he attempted to jump on her. When he was in the air, Jirou quickly grabbed Hikari's arm and pulled her toward him successfully causing her to dodge Eiji's jump. Eiji, who should have landed face first on the ground, did a quick hand spring to land on his feet. He glared at Jirou and Jirou returned his glare. Hikari didn't know what to do. She looked as the two stare each other down and then turned to look at Oshitari and Fuji to stop them. They complied by nodding their heads.

Fuji placed a hand on Eiji's shoulder. "Let's go Eiji, we have to get home." He said and the red head nodded. He turned and started walking in the direction of the front gate. Fuji waited for Hikari.

Oshitari placed a hand on Jirou's shoulder. "Come on Jirou. We have to clean up after the practice."

Jirou glanced back at Oshitari and nodded. He turned to Hikari. "I'll see you tomorrow, Hikari-chan." He said with a soft smile.

Hikari nodded. "Bye Jirou-kun." She said happily. She turned to leave with Fuji. She glanced back to see Jirou still watching her. She felt her cheeks heat up a little as she waved goodbye to him and he returned to gesture. Hikari and Fuji met up with Eiji at the front gate, whose energetic behavior had returned. However, the walk home was unusually quiet.

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**The end of chapter 8! Okay so I have a feeling that Fuji became a little ooc. But we all know how protective Fuji is of Yuuta. So I figured if Hikari and Syusuke are so close… her being his cousin who is a girl… Fuji would be **_**extra**_** protective. That's my theory. If you disagree just let me know and I'll keep that in mind for later chapters.**

**Any way! Please review if you can. Any and all types are welcomed.**

**Oh and I want to get to know my readers more! I want to know your thoughts and ideas for the story! I don't really check my email often so I don't usually get the reviews right away BUT I'm literally always on Tumblr. Send me a message there any time! ganzyyy . tumblr . com :)**


	9. I Did My Research

**It has been a long time, but hello all! I am finally done the semester! And that means... (drum roll please) I can continue writing!**

**My grades were getting a little scary there because Tumblr was distracting me... **

**But anyway... here is a rewritten chapter 9 and I would like to thank the following for A) following this story and/or B) favoriting it also!  
Kisaratezuka, Kaitana08, and Araka-chan!  
**

**Thanks guys! Hikari and I appreciate your support! :)**

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Sleep hath its own world,  
A boundary between the things misnames  
Death and existence:  
Sleep hath its own world,  
And a wide realm of wild reality,  
And dreams in their development have breath,  
And tears and tortures, and the touch of joy.

Lord Byron

* * *

Once the conflict between Jirou and Eiji seemed to be solved, Oshitari left to walk back to the tennis courts. Practice had just finished and they needed to help some with the cleanup. Jirou, however, stayed where he was after he had said goodbye to Hikari. He watched as she jogged back over to her cousin. He smiled softly as he watched her leave. When she turned around, smiled and waved, he felt his smile broaden as he returned the gesture.

As soon as Hikari was out of sight, Jirou turned to walk back over to the tennis courts. He helped pick up some of the scattered tennis balls as the day's events replayed in his mind… over and over. He tried to look as bored and tired as possible, but the small smile still seemed to find its way out. He really didn't want anyone else to find out. Oshitari already knew and that was scary enough for Jirou. He sighed at the thought of Oshitari using the information as blackmail of some sort. A shiver ran up his spine at the depressing idea.

Jirou picked up his share of what needed to be done. The regulars didn't technically have to clean, but he along with some others tended to help out now and again. He found Oshitari standing near Atobe. He wanted to talk to Oshitari alone. "Oshitari." Jirou called out as he walked over grabbing the other boy's attention. "Can I talk to you for a little bit?" He asked. He hoped he wouldn't grab Atobe's attention.

Oshitari nodded. He glanced at Atobe who was still sitting on the bench. He frowned slightly at the sight of the smirk on Atobe's face. However, he followed Jirou as they left the courts and stayed out of ear shot of the other players. When they stopped walking, Oshitari asked, "What do you want to talk about?"

He watched as Jirou shifted slightly. "I just wanted to talk about some things…" He trailed off. It was obvious that he was still trying to gather his thoughts.

"What sort of things?" Oshitari pushed. He didn't want to take long in fear that it would spark Atobe's interests.

It was quiet for some time. Oshitari kept trying to read Jirou's body movements, but it was more difficult than usual due to Jirou's odd behavior the past few days. He was about to question Jirou again, but Jirou finally opened his mouth. "Please don't tell anyone!" He shouted slightly.

Oshitari blinked in surprise, but he was completely confused. "Jirou… what are you talking… about…?" He asked trying to figure out what was going on.

Jirou finally looked up at him. Oshitari was surprised to see his face so flustered and embarrassed. Jirou of course didn't want to have to spell it out. He was hoping that Oshitari would just understand what he was talking about, but it was obvious that he would have to explain himself. "Please don't tell anyone…" He said again. "About… Hikari…" He mumbled.

Oshitari smirked. "Ah…" He began. "You don't want anyone to know that you love her." He stated plainly.

"I don't love her!" Jirou yelled, but Oshitari knew better. It was as plain as the blush on his face that he, at the very least, cared for her deeply. "I just don't want to cause her any trouble." Jirou was thinking about the many fangirls that always seemed to follow him everywhere.

"So you don't want me to say anything?" Oshitari asked.

"Yes." Jirou stated seriously which was out of character for him. But then he shifted slightly and looked away from Oshitari. "You and Hikari seemed like good friends so I thought that you wouldn't have any problems…" He mumbled again in embarrassment.

Oshitari hummed in thought. "Hm… alright. I won't tell anyone about how much you love Hikari Fuji." Oshitari stated.

"No!" Jirou shouted. "Wait! I don't love her!" He was trying to figure out ways to convince Oshitari that he didn't love her. "She's just a friend!"

Just a friend…? He questioned himself. "Well whatever…" Oshitari responded in a bored tone. "It doesn't matter." He looked back over at the courts. The first years and non-regular members were still cleaning up. "Is there anything else that you wish to talk about?"

Jirou frowned slightly. He figured that Oshitari wouldn't say anything about Hikari to anyone. If they were as close as they seemed then he wouldn't try to purposely hurt her. Jirou sighed. There was another thing that he wanted to ask Oshitari. He glanced at the other regular member and saw him waiting patiently. He figured it couldn't hurt to at least try. "Could you tell me a little about Hikari?" He asked genuinely curious.

Oshitari's eyebrows rose slightly at the question. He hadn't expected Jirou to be this bold about something. He frowned. He didn't think Hikari would have this kind of effect on him. "Why do you want to know about Hikari all of a sudden?" He asked seriously. "The two of you seem to be good friends. You could probably just ask her anything and she would answer." Although Oshitari said that, he actually doubted that she would answer questions about herself easily.

Surprisingly, Jirou didn't back down. "I don't really know that much about her." He said. It was true. The only things that he knew about her were her name, her cousin was Fuji Syusuke, and that she loved tennis. "I don't want to know her life story." He explained. "Just something to help me understand her better…"

Oshitari sighed in slight annoyance. "It's better if you just ask her yourself." He explained.

"Why?" Jirou questioned. You could hear the pleading in his voice.

Oshitari looked away from Jirou. "What makes you think I would know about Hikari anyway?" He had promised Hikari not to say anything to anyone about her background. "I may very well know just as much as you do."

Jirou looked surprised. "But you've known her since the beginning of this year! And you helped her get used to the school!" He said desperately and he started to complain. He was beginning to lose hope of learning anything about Hikari. He just wanted to know small things about her that would help him get closer to her. Like what her favorite color was or what she liked to eat… Just stupid stuff like that… He had thought Oshitari knew about her by the way they talked so easily with each other. He only wanted to be close to her like that…

Oshitari sighed again. It was probably better off to just tell him the truth after all. "Jirou." He said seriously causing the orange haired boy to quiet down. "I know you have good intentions in mind, but I honestly can't tell you anything about Hikari." He crossed his arms over his chest and watched Jirou's reaction.

Jirou's facial expression slowly went from a serious face to a face filled with despair. His eyes searched the ground as he tried to think of something to say. Oshitari simply waited once again for Jirou to respond. Jirou felt as though Oshitari knew at least some kind of information about the girl. "Why not?" He asked with little emotion on his face besides depression. His voice was quieter than usual.

Oshitari shrugged. "You could say I'm under oath…" He said as he avoided Jirou's stare.

Jirou raised an eyebrow though his mouth continued to stay in a pout. "What does that mean?"

"I promised Hikari at the beginning of this year that I wouldn't tell anyone about who she is." Oshitari responded to Jirou's question.

Jirou frowned. Why couldn't Oshitari just explain things easily? He felt like he was still in class. "I don't understand…" He was trying to wrap his mind around it. "What could be so bad that I can't know?" He asked honestly.

Oshitari didn't know what to say. He promised Hikari to keep quiet, but when she was around Jirou, she looked happier. That thought on its own convinced him to talk to Jirou a little. "She's… very self conscious about some things..." He explained cautiously. "She doesn't want people to know about it. It's why she tries not to stand out a lot." Though the fact that Hikari had blonde hair from her mother's American genes didn't help her stay hidden very well. Oshitari thought she stood out quite a lot.

"I see…" Jirou was obviously disappointed. "If I ask her questions about herself, do you think she will answer me?"

"It all depends." Oshitari said honestly. "It's hard for her to talk about some things, but if you earn her trust she will probably open up to you."

"You know a lot about her… don't you?" Jirou noticed and he suddenly felt defeated. Oshitari knew so much more about Hikari than Jirou ever would. It made his stomach sink just thinking about it.

Oshitari shrugged and turned to the side as if he was about to leave. "I did my research on her." He said. "That's all." He began to make his way back toward the tennis courts to watch over the clean up being done.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jirou yelled angrily. He barely got one simple answer out of Oshitari throughout the entire conversation.

Oshitari simply raised his hand as he continued to walk away with his back facing Jirou. "Maybe you'll find out, and maybe you won't." It was a simple answer that didn't give any answers to the frustrated Jirou.

Jirou just watched as Oshitari walked back toward the tennis courts. His whole plan to learn more information about Hikari had ended up being a complete and utter failure. At least now he knew that it would be completely up to him to learn more about her. He did have to thank Oshitari for one thing. He had to earn Hikari's trust. If he could do that, he could get closer to her. He had a feeling that it was going to be difficult, but for some reason… he didn't mind.

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**And that my loyal and patient (oh so patient) fans is the end of Chapter 9! And I am going to start rewriting Chapter 10! I've been neglecting you guys for far too long. And it is my duty as a writer to create good chapters that you guys would enjoy.**

**I know that Jirou is a little OOC throughout the story, and I'm trying to keep it at a minimum. But seriously guys. Love makes you do some crazy crap. I am also victim of this problem :)**

**Well Read and Review! Have any suggestions, I'm _always_ open! Until next time!**


	10. Very Interesting Indeed

Living is a disease from which sleep gives us relief eight hours a day.  
-Chamfort

Atobe was a very strict captain when it came to his team practicing. He wanted his team to be the best, but of course _he_ had to be better than _them_. That was just a simple given. He sat quietly on the sidelines for the day's practice and analyzed each of the regular's games. For him, though he was captain, this became quite boring. Everything was always the same outcome. The same people went against the same opponents and the same person always won in a certain amount of time. It was becoming much too redundant for him.

Sometimes Atobe would look out to see if any of the spectators had changed. He felt like those people never changed either. The same girls came for the same tennis regular and they yelled the usual cheers and were always filled with way too much excitement for just a practice. The usual scouts were there from other schools, but he was never surprised to see a new school appear now and then. In fact that just helped boost his out of control ego that seemed to have no end.

But as Atobe nonchalantly scanned the crowds he saw someone that didn't seem to fit the typical fan girl status. She was not acting overly excited nor like she was love stricken for one the regulars. She was just there watching the matches with a content smile on her face. She was sitting in the stands with her elbows propped up on her knees and her head resting comfortably in the palms of her hands. Atobe raised an eyebrow as he watched her carefully trying to analyze what this girl was doing. Because no _girl_ ever came to just _watch _tennis. There was always some ulterior motive.

He followed her peaceful gaze to Jirou and instantly became interested in the girl. He was far from stupid, how could Ore-sama not notice that Jirou's behavior today was completely different from what was considered the norm. Atobe had even gotten word from Jirou's teachers that he had stayed awake in all of his classes.

Atobe paid little attention to the other two games. He knew what the outcomes would be. Ootori and Kabaji would play a full game of tennis. Kabaji would try to copy Ootori's Scud Serve, but he wouldn't be able to control it. Then Ootori would overpower Kabaji with the power of said serve. Shishido will play Hiyoshi. Shishido would win that match because he never gives up. Of course Atobe would never admit that he actually liked that about Shishido. Then Shishido would play Gakuto and in all honesty Atobe could care less about that outcome. So Atobe focused on watching Jirou's every move since Oshitari was having a very difficult time against the orange haired boy.

Jirou was playing above the usual excitement. He didn't usually show this much enthusiasm playing against his own team unless it was against Atobe. He was acting even more excited than when he played against Fuji from Seigaku.

In the end, Jirou ended up winning the match 6-4. Oshitari was completely stunned at the turn of events. The only thing he could do was watch as Jirou started celebrating and yelling, "Yes! I won! I beat Oshitari!"

Jirou was still celebrating with himself and Oshitari was about to go observe the other games that were still going. Atobe watched his actions carefully. Oshitari stopped walking away and stared past Jirou. Atobe realized that the girl was now standing by the side smiling brightly. "I don't believe it." Oshitari said to himself but Atobe could hear him. "I never thought I would see you of all people here." He said much louder than before because now he walking over to the girl who was smiling softly.

Jirou stopped celebrating when he heard the girl's slight laugh. When he turned around, he saw Oshitari walking over to the girl. "Hello, Yuushi-kun!" The girl said with a soft smile. Atobe was quite curious on how close they were.

"I never expected to see you of all people here watching tennis." Oshitari said again seriously as if to emphasize the point. "Doesn't it bother you?"

Atobe watched as her smile vanished for a few seconds. "Hm…" She hummed but then smiled as she looked to the side. "Things change…" Atobe thought he heard. He followed her gaze to where Jirou was standing.

Oshitari also looked to where the girl was looking. A smirk appeared on his face when he noticed she was looking at Jirou. "Jirou was talking about a girl with blonde hair and brown eyes, but I never expected it to be you." He said as Jirou was walking over.

Atobe smirked when he saw Jirou's surprised and embarrassed face and the girl's face blush slightly. Things seemed to be getting interesting. It was a nice change from the normal days. Before Oshitari could say anything else, Jirou walked a bit quicker to reach them. From what Atobe could see, Jirou actually looked jealous… "Hikari-chan, you came." Jirou said with a smile.

Atobe focused in on their conversations as he pretended to watch the other matches. Now and then, he would glance in their direction. "Of course I did." He heard the girl, Hikari, say. A small laugh escaped her lips. "I told you in class that I was going to come to watch."

Atobe glanced over to see Jirou shrug. "Did you like the match?" He asked as Atobe looked back at the tennis matches that were still playing.

"It was amazing!" He heard her exclaim. "You're style of play is interesting… I like how you use your volleys during the game." The two laughed together making Atobe's smirk widen.

"Thanks." Jirou said. There was a slight pause in the conversation. "I didn't know that you knew Oshitari…" Atobe heard Jirou say. He had to admit that he was curious about what the answer to that would be. He could also hear how unsure Jirou was about it.

"Oh!" He heard Hikari exclaim. "Oshitari is in most of my classes. He was the first person to befriend me. It made it easier for me to study here." Atobe turned to see Hikari turn toward Oshitari. "I always meant to thank you by the way."

"It was my pleasure." Oshitari smiled. Atobe was surprised to see him smiling. This girl was getting more and more interesting by the second.

"I see…" Jirou yawned and Atobe figured that it was from staying awake all day. But he was impressed that the orange haired boy was able to stay awake and attend all of his classes. "Hey Oshitari… can we leave now that our game is done?"

"Ah… I believe so." Oshitari replied. "We were only playing one match each except for either Shishido or Hiyoshi."

"Well I'm leaving then…" Jirou said and Atobe glanced back to see him smiling. "Come on Hikari-chan!" Jirou jumped over the fence that separated him from Hikari. He grabbed her wrist and started pulling the girl away from the tennis courts.

Hikari yelled out from surprise. "Uh… bye Yuushi-kun…" She tried to yell as Jirou continued to pull her away.

Oshitari laughed softly as he walked over without thinking to stand beside where Atobe was simply lounging around watching the game. Oshitari seemed deep in thought when Atobe began to speak. "Oshitari, that girl seems to be quite interesting." He said never letting his eyes leave the match in front of him.

Oshitari looked down at Atobe from behind his glasses trying to understand what Atobe was speaking about. "Are you talking about Hikari?" Oshitari asked while hoping that he was talking about some other girl in the large crowd.

"Yes, I believe that Jirou had called her that." Atobe said a smirk threatening to play across his face.

"Why would someone as plain as her interest you?"

The smirk finally reappeared on his face. "She just seems rather intriguing; I can't quite put my finger on it." Oshitari watched Atobe carefully. "Tell me Oshitari, what is your relationship with that girl?"

Oshitari realized that he was never going to get Atobe to call Hikari by her actual name, but that actually made him relieved to some extent. Maybe Hikari wasn't as 'intriguing' as Atobe was making her seem. "She is a friend of mine. I met her at the beginning of this year." He didn't want to give Atobe any unnecessary information until he knew exactly what his intentions for Hikari were.

"Then if you are friends, why don't you tell me a little about her?"

This isn't what Oshitari was hoping for. "Well… she was originally from this area, but it was almost three years ago that she moved over seas. She said that she moved back to this area at the beginning of the school year."

"Why did she move back? What is her family status?"

Oshitari hesitated. This was getting a little too personal now. "I'm not sure…"

"Oh please, I know you Oshitari, you must at least know this information."

Oshitari sighed. "Well her father moves around a lot for work."

"And what does he do? They must have some large amount of money if she is able to attend here."

"…I honestly do not know what kind of business her father does. She attends due to an academic scholarship…"

"Interesting… what did you say her full name was?"

"I didn't." Oshitari said.

"Well, you can say it now can't you?"

"Her name is Fuji Hikari…" Oshitari said sounding defeated.

Atobe smirked. "Yes… very interesting indeed."

Oshitari said nothing else. He began to watch the other matches along with Atobe. They seemed to be taking longer than usual. Oshitari could not focus on the matches that were taking place in front of him. He kept going over the conversation that he had just had with Atobe. He just wished that he knew what his captain was thinking about, or if Atobe really found Hikari interesting. Oshitari hoped that this wasn't the case, for he knew that when Atobe thought someone was interesting or worth noticing, it usually meant that he had something in plan for them. Oshitari wanted to protect Hikari. He decided that as soon as he saw her smiling so brightly with Jirou. At the beginning of this year she wouldn't have smiled like that if she was around tennis, but something was changing and he would try to help her if he could.

Oshitari was so lost in his thoughts. Soon he heard people whispering and when he turned, Oshitari saw Fuji and Eiji of Seigaku looking around. Oshitari glanced at Atobe who was smirking at the two. "Go welcome them." He said to Oshitari. He nodded and went to go and greet the two tennis players. This whole ordeal was becoming quite entertaining for Atobe.

Oshitari stood in front of the Seigaku tennis genius. "What are you doing here, Fuji-san?" Oshitari asked.

Fuji's stared Oshitari down. "I'm looking for my cousin, Fuji Hikari." Oshitari's eyebrows rose slightly. "Have you seen her?"

Oshitari sighed and looked out over the tennis courts. "I'm afraid I haven't seen her for a while now." He looked back at the Seigaku players, but kept his head facing another direction. "I'm surprised two of you came to escort her home."

"She's my cousin." Fuji replied.

"That girl can handle herself." Oshitari turned his head to look at Fuji more clearly. "She's not weak you know."

Fuji stared at him. "Hikari needs me." His voice was serious. "You don't know her like I do." Eiji stood there confused.

"Maybe you're right." Oshitari replied but his voice sounded sarcastic.

Fuji turned to Eiji. "Come on Eiji, we can find Hikari without his help." They turned to walk away. Atobe smirked when he saw Hikari and Jirou running towards them.

"Syusuke!" Fuji turned to the sound of his name. When Hikari was standing in front of him, she continued, "I'm so sorry." She was bent over trying to catch her breath. "I didn't mean to make you worry." Jirou walked up next to her.

"It's fine." Fuji said.

She glared at him. "I told you to stay at the front gate." She hissed. "I always listen to you. Why couldn't you just wait like I told you to?" She was annoyed.

"You were taking too long." Fuji countered.

"Fine." She huffed.

"Hikari-chan's okay!" Eiji yelled and tried to jump on her. However, Jirou pulled Hikari to the side causing Eiji to miss her. Eiji was able to do a hand spring to land on his feet. The two began to glare at each other. Hikari looked to Oshitari and Fuji to stop them, who nodded in response.

Fuji placed a hand on Eiji's shoulder. "Let's go Eiji, we have to get home." He said and Eiji nodded. He turned and started to walk away. Fuji waited for Hikari.

Oshitari placed a hand on Jirou's shoulder. "Come on Jirou. We have to clean up after practice."

Jirou glanced at Oshitari and nodded. He turned to Hikari and smiled softly. "I'll see you tomorrow, Hikari-chan."

Hikari nodded. "Bye Jirou-kun." She said happily. Atobe watched as she left with her cousin. Jirou stood there watching her leave. She glanced back and waved goodbye to him shyly. Jirou easily returned the gesture with a bright smile on his face. When she was out of sight, Jirou began his walk to the tennis courts. Atobe returned his attention to the courts. Gakuto was finishing up his match with Shishido. Shishido was winning. The other members of the tennis team were cleaning up on the other courts that had already finished their matches. He watched the game in front of him with a smirk.

Oshitari returned to his spot by Atobe. He saw the look on his face and knew it wasn't a good sign. Somehow, Oshitari knew that whatever Atobe was thinking had to do with Hikari. He could only hope that whatever he had planned, he would not hurt her in any way.

Atobe was beyond joyous. He didn't care that Hikari was related to Fuji. It didn't matter. What _did_ matter was that he cared enough about her to come all the way here to pick her up. It meant that the two of them were close. Atobe began to calculate possible ways to use Hikari against Fuji in some shape or form. Then another thought occurred to him. He could possibly use her to make Jirou play like he did today in every match. The possibilities seemed endless and it was all thanks to this normal, average girl.

He was still thinking of possibilities when Jirou came over to talk to Oshitari. Atobe smirked. This was very interesting…

Oshitari returned when Shishido finished the match against Gakuto. "Oshitari," Atobe began. "What did Jirou wish to talk about?" Of course Atobe was pretty sure what or who it was about.

"Jirou just wanted to know more about Hikari."

"Did you tell him what he wanted to know?" Atobe asked.

"No, I told him that he would have to find out on his own." Oshitari said and noticed Atobe's facial features change. His smirk began to disappear.

"I think that you should help the boy out." Atobe explained. "He is very new at this kind of thing and it would only be fair to give him some advice about Hikari since you seem to be close with her."

Oshitari was surprised… though he did his best to hide it. He knew. He knew that Atobe had a plan for Hikari now. Atobe had gone out of his way to remember and use the name of an average girl. "I cannot do that captain." Oshitari said with as much respect as he could. "I had promised Hikari a long time ago not to tell anyone about her. She is very self-conscious about some things."

"Everyone is about something." Atobe said trying to hide his annoyance. "I'm sure you'll be able to help him by at least telling him what she likes."

"I don't think I can."

Atobe was clearly annoyed now. "Fine." He said rather quickly. "We'll see if you practice with the regulars for the rest of the week." Atobe stood from his bench to leave.

Oshitari stared at him in amazement. He wouldn't actually remove one of the greatest aspects from the regulars. Atobe began to walk away. But this was Atobe… He could do it if he really wanted to. "Wait." Oshitari said cursing himself slightly. "I'll see what I can do." He felt so defeated.

"That's good to hear." Atobe said with a smirk. He said nothing more as he left Oshitari on the courts.

**Sorry it took so long. I've been swamped with work. Thesis papers and what not. They are killing me with work. And I'm going to Costa Rica this summer for a study abroad program. So if you guys don't hear from for a bit that's why. I'm going to try to update as much as possible but I apologize ahead if I can't keep this promise :( I'll do my best.**


	11. We Can Go Shopping

Hey guys, I feel like every time I come on here I'm apologizing. And here I am, yet again, apologizing. I am so very sorry about the long wait. Thank you to all those that are following/favoriting this story. Hikari and I are very grateful. I recently just came back to the US. I was studying abroad in Costa Rica. About this chapter... It's not very interesting and again sorry. BUT it will be opening the story up to new ideas and I'm going to reconnect with Hikari and figure out what's going to happen next in the story! Again: comments/criticism is welcome

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Once in the dream of a night I stood  
Lone in the light of magical wood,  
Soul-deep in visions that poppy-like sprang;  
And spirits of Truth were the birds that sang,  
And spirits of Love were the stars that glowed,  
And spirits of Peace were the streams that flowed  
In the magical wood in the land of sleep.

Lone in the light of that magical grove,  
I felt the stars of the spirits of Love  
Gather and gleam round me delicate youth,  
And I heard the song of the spirits of Truth;  
To quench my longing I bent me low  
By the streams of the spirits of Peace that flow  
In that magical wood in the land of sleep.

Excerpt from: Song of a Dream  
Sarojini Naidu

"Hikari!" A voice yelled causing her eyes to flutter open. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes as a yawn escaped her lips. Again, she rubbed her eyes as the yawn brought tears to them. She stared around her room at the pale green colored walls. Sunlight was coming in through her windows and lighting up the light colored room. She pulled her comforter that was colored in different shades of green and brown over her head to free herself from the light.

"Hikari!" The voice called out this time closer than the last. Hikari could hear the door to her bedroom open and a person walking across her tan carpet. "Hikari~!" The voice sang. "It's time to get up." Her voice was much too cheerful for the early morning.

"No…" Hikari complained. "Five more minutes…" She pulled the covers tightly around her.

"Sorry Kari!" Suddenly the covers were ripped from her grasp and out of her reach. She scurried for her pillows in order to shield her eyes, but just as her hands touched the fabric, the pillow was pulled away from her also.

"No…" Hikari cried sadly. She didn't want to get up yet.

"If you don't wake up now, you'll be late for school." Hikari looked up to see the short blonde hair and blue eyes of her mother. "Do you want your father to be angry?" She asked.

Hikari frowned. "Dad's never here to begin with." She mumbled as she sat up.

Her mother smiled sadly. "Your father works hard so that we can live happily and I can stay home to take care of you." She explained. "Now get ready." She said walking toward Hikari's bedroom door.

"Hai…" Hikari said. She stood up but quickly fell to the floor with a loud thump. "Ow…" She complained as she pushed herself up with her arms.

"Kari?!" Her mother ran back to the room. Fear showed itself on her face and in her eyes as she saw her fourteen year old daughter lying on the floor next to her bed. "Are you okay? What happened?" She dropped to her knees next to her and helped Hikari sit up.

"I'm… okay…" Hikari said rubbing her head. As her mother helped her sit up, she looked down at her left leg and frowned. The pink scars that covered her knee were puffier than usual. "It's my fault." She explained. "I ran a lot yesterday…"

"Oh Hikari…" Her mother frowned. "Why would you do something like that? You know it's not good for you…"

"I'm sorry… I wasn't thinking." She laughed slightly.

Her mother sighed. "Here." She stood and held her hand out for her daughter to take which she gladly took. She pulled her daughter up and held her there until she gained control of her legs again. "You really are my child." She said when she let go of Hikari's arm.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Hikari frowned as she began to look for her uniform. She took out a brown pleated skirt, a white dress shirt, and a tan blazer from her closet.

Her mother sat on her bed as she watched her daughter prepare for school. She just wanted to make sure she didn't fall again. "Well…" She began. "When I was in high school in America, I used to play field hockey. I was very good, but in my junior year I got hurt."

"You never told me that…" Hikari frowned as she walked over to her dresser.

Her mother laughed, but her blue eyes seemed sad. "It was my fault. I wasn't paying attention and an opposing player went to hit the ball. When her swing came up, her stick collided with my knee." Hikari bit her lip as she removed a dark orange tie, and black stockings. She had gotten permission to wear stockings instead of knee highs due to her scars. "I fractured my knee cap and partially tore my ACL. I had to stop playing altogether because of the fracture. It took over a year to heal. But I didn't want to leave field hockey so I tried to continue running and training, but then I pretty much destroyed my knee completely."

"Mom…" Hikari's frown deepened.

Her mother smiled softly. "I just don't want you to completely mess things up like I did." She explained. "I know it's been three years… but you still need time to heal. You are a young girl and your body is still growing. If you push yourself too hard, you might regret it later." She stood up when she noticed her daughter's legs were stable. "You better hurry up. I'll have breakfast ready for you so move your butt."

"Hai…" Hikari said quietly.

"Hey, no long faces!" Her mother smiled. "I just don't want you to make my mistakes. I'll even drive you to school. How about that?" She asked.

Hikari smiled. "Okay mom."

Hikari walked to the bathroom to brush her teeth and fix her hair. She wanted to leave it down, but she noticed that it was far too messy to do with the little time she had to get ready. She frowned as the tied her hair up in a messy bun. To make it look a little nicer, she had a flower clip to the side of it. She walked back to her room and quickly changed out of her pajamas for her uniform. She went to her closet and found her brown shoes and carried them, along with her book bag, down stairs and to the kitchen.

"I made scrambled eggs and bacon." Her mother said when she heard her daughter enter the room. "I figured it would be faster to eat."

"Thanks." She said as she sat down to eat. She began to eat and smiled. "This is so good!" She cheered as she started swallowing her food quickly.

"Hey!" Her mom hit her hand lightly. "Easy or you'll start choking!" And just to prove her point, Hikari accidentally choked on her food. "See?" Her mother smirked.

Hikari coughed again. "That's not funny…" She said but her mother just laughed as she cleaned up the dishes while her daughter ate.

When Hikari finished eating, she took her dish to the sink to wash it. "Thanks for the food mom." She said happily.

Her mother smiled back at her. "Here." She held out her hand. "I'll take care of the dishes. Your bento is in the fridge. Finish packing that up while I do this… you have a few extra minutes since I'm driving you." Hikari nodded and gave her mom the dishes.

When she was ready to leave, her mother drove her to Hyotei. As the car stopped, Hikari unbuckled herself and grabbed her bag. "I'll see you tonight." She said as she opened the door.

"Tonight?" Her mom asked confused. "I thought you were coming home after school today…"

"I'm supposed to go to Seigaku because I skipped out of Syu-chan yesterday." She said leaning down from outside the car to see inside.

"I think it would be better for you to come straight home." Her mother said, but Hikari frowned. "Kari… what if you collapse again… think about Syusuke's feelings…" She explained and Hikari sighed.

"You're right." She said and her mother smiled softly. "I'll let him know that I'll see him tomorrow at his games."

"Good." She said. "And we can go shopping and eat out tonight. It's been awhile since we really did anything together."

Hikari nodded and smiled brightly. "That sounds like fun. I'll see you after school then mom."

"I'll be here to pick you up!" She sang as Hikari closed the door.

Hikari waved as her mom drove away. She laughed softly. Her mom was always trying to make her feel better. And now she was actually excited to get through this day. "Okay let's do this Hikari." She said with a bright smile.

The day was horrible even with her knowing she and her mom were going out after. It was Friday and she did not want to be in school. But her last class always gave her a little extra spirit. She would get to see Jirou. As she sat in her seat, she waited for him to arrive. And right on cue, he walked in. He smiled brightly when he saw her and she tried to hold back as much as possible to not earn the glare from Yumi.

"Hi Hikari-chan." Jirou said when he reached his seat and sat down.

"Good afternoon Jirou-kun." Her smile spread across her face from just saying his name. Before they could continue their conversation, the bell rang and the teacher entered calling for the start of classes.

Once the class was over, Jirou immediately packed his books and turned to Hikari. He watched as she slowly packed her own bag. "Are you ready?" He asked when she was finished her task.

"Ready for what?" Hikari asked confused.

"To go to practice." He said smiling as they walked out of the classroom. His tone hinted that it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Hikari immediately felt guilt ripple through her. She had told Syusuke that she wasn't going to his practice, but she had never informed Jirou the same. "Jirou-kun…" She said slowly. "I can't go to your practice today… I forgot to tell you."

Jirou's face immediately fell. Hikari felt terrible. She knew how much he loved tennis and she really enjoyed watching their practice. "I'm sorry…" She said sadly.

Jirou sighed. "Why aren't you coming?" He asked. He figured that she was going to Fuji's practice. It bothered him slightly, but he wasn't sure if it was because Fuji was there or Kikumaru…

"I'm going shopping with my mom." She said happily. "It's been a long time since we went somewhere just the two of us to have fun…"

Jirou saw how happy and excited she was. How could he possibly be upset if she was this happy? He asked himself. Jirou chuckled slightly at the childish face she was showing. "That sounds fun." He said with a small smile.

Hikari's smile faltered somewhat. "I really am sorry about not going to your practice though." She remembered to not mention the fact that she was going to miss it anyway.

"It's fine." Jirou said when they stopped at her locker. Hikari opened it and gathered her things. "I'll walk you to the gate." Jirou found himself saying.

"You don't have to…" Hikari said. She could just imagine the things that her mother would say.

"But I want to." He said with a soft smile.

Hikari looked at him and frowned. "Okay." She smiled. She couldn't keep the frown in place for too long when seeing such a soft smile on his face.

As they walked out of the school building, Hikari thought of something. "Hey Jirou…" She said in thought causing the orange haired boy to look at her. "What are you doing tomorrow?" She asked.

"We have practice since we lost to Seigaku." He replied, but curiosity got the better of him. "Why?"

"I was going to go to Syusuke's games this weekend…" She said a little hesitantly. "I was… wondering if you would want to go?" She looked to see his face slightly surprised.

"Really?" He asked. Hikari nodded with a small smile. "But I have practice…" He said thinking. "I'll go to park when we finish everything here."

Hikari beamed. Her day just got ten times better. "That's great!" She said and hugged him tightly. Jirou froze slightly. He could feel his face turning red. "I'll see you tomorrow then! Bye Jirou!" She said as she jogged over to her mom's car.

"Bye Hikari!" He called out to her and waved. She waved to him before finally getting in.

As Hikari buckled herself in, she glanced at her mother. "What?" She asked.

"So… Who's the boy?" She asked with a knowing smile.

"He's just a friend!" Hikari was way too defensive for him to be just a friend. But in reality, that's exactly what they were. It was just a lot of fun to be around him all the time.

"Mmhmm…" Her mother hummed as they drove away. "Well does this friend have a name?" She questioned.

Hikari suddenly felt overly embarrassed. "His name is Akutagawa Jirou…" She mumbled, but she knew her mother could hear.

"Hmmm…" Her mother thought. "He's attractive. I approve." Her mother said while nodding her head.

"Mom!" Hikari said. She could feel her cheeks heating up.

"What?" Her mom asked and laughed. "I'm just saying that you picked a good one!"

"You're so embarrassing!" Hikari yelled, but eventually started laughing along with her mother.


	12. Love Makes You Act Like An Idiot

To achieve the impossible dream, try doing to sleep.  
- Joan Klempner

* * *

Right now, practice was an obstacle that Jirou had to overcome. His teammates were a bit worried about him. He was anxious, jittery, and simply impatient. Obviously, it wasn't like him at all. In fact, it was like he did a complete 180 for the day. Oshitari and Atobe had an idea as to why their teammate was acting... well... odd. But they decided not to make any assumptions.

Eventually Atobe called over Oshitari. "Oshitari, I want you to find out what's wrong with Jirou." It wasn't like Atobe was really worried. The boy was already working harder than he usually did, but he wasn't completely focused. His end goal was much different from that of the team at the moment.

Oshitari sighed but walked over to Jirou nonetheless. He was currently sitting on the ground near the wall stretching his legs. Oshitari leaned against the wall. "Is everything alright?" He asked, but didn't receive an answer. He looked down to see Jirou still stretching. "Hey, Jirou." Nothing. Oshitari lost his patience and nudged the boy with his foot. "Hey!" His voice rose a little.

Jirou jumped and looked up. "What?" His eyes seemed dazed like he was just sleeping. He eventually focused on Oshitari. "Oh... Oshitari, what's up?" He gave half a smile.

Oshitari sighed. _Was he sleep walking? _He wondered confused. He shook his head to clear the thoughts. "I was asking if you were okay."

"Oh..." Jirou drawled out. "I'm fine."

"Then why aren't you practicing seriously today? It's like your head is in the clouds." Oshitari accused.

Jirou stiffened. "It's just..." He paused in his thoughts and Oshitari had to wait, but his patience was truly wearing thin. "Hikari asked me to meet her at the park after practice." He explained as he reached out to touch his toes again. "We're going to watch Fuji play in his game..."

Oshitari's left eye started twitching and out of impatience he pushed his glasses up his nose. "Really..." He sighed. "You're worried about this?" Jirou nodded. "Why?" He no longer could hold his annoyed voice back. He was happy for Hikari because she was happy. But god Jirou was just so ridiculous. Maybe it was the fact that his attitude was changing and Oshitari was having a hard time adjusting, but he really just wanted to shake the boy and tell him to open his eyes. Hikari obviously liked him and he obviously liked her. The whole team could tell, but they weren't just going to start teasing him about it because... hell... everyone was happy with the change of work ethic. But this... this was just going too far. Now he was just going through the motions again.

"I don't know..." Now Jirou was showing his annoyance. But unlike Oshitari, this feeling was because of his confusion. Jirou was annoyed with himself for acting so stupid. "She's just..." He began but stopped himself. He didn't really want to talk to Oshitari about Hikari. He was still jealous that the two were so close.

Oshitari rolled his eyes. "Just spit it out."

Jirou tensed. "I'm bummed that Hikari went to see Fuji instead of me... I think." He wasn't sure. Jealousy, depression... he was feeling worthless. "I feel like I can't win." He admitted.

_Where the hell is this coming from? _Oshitari wondered. _Where did the overconfident Jirou from a few days ago vanish to?_ He ran a hand through his hair trying to gather his thoughts. "Jirou..." He began slowly causing his teammate to look at him. "Didn't she invite you to the park?" Jirou nodded. "Then doesn't that mean she wants to spend time with you?" Did Oshitari really have to spell it out to him. "She probably feels bad that she couldn't come watch your practice. It is her cousin and he _does_ have a game."

Jirou laughed and shook his head. "Your right. I'm an idiot."

Oshitari shrugged. "Love makes you act like an idiot sometimes."

"I'm not!" Jirou said with wide eyes. "I'm not in love..." Jirou mumbled. "At least... I don't think I am."

"Well..." Oshitari pushed himself away from the wall. "Until you figure it out, why don't you stop worrying us with your weird behavior. Practice hard then you'll get to see Hikari." Jirou nodded and stood up as well. "When you're with her, you'll eventually be able to figure out all these weird feelings. But I can tell you one thing." He turned to look Jirou straight in the eye. "Acting depressed isn't going to help you any." He walked away.

Jirou watched Oshitari walk away. He felt a little lighter just from talking with him. He smiled. Oshitari was right, being upset about something stupid was definitely not going to help him. Being happy to play tennis and being happy to see her after would help him enough. "Thanks..." He mumbled, knowing full well that no one could hear him, as he went to finish practice.

When practice was over, Jirou quickly put things away and showered. He ran past Oshitari. "I'm leaving!" He called back.

"Tell her I said hi." Oshitari called back. Jirou gave him a thumbs up and ran toward the park.

"So it was the girl." Oshitari turned to Atobe. "It seems you got it under control."

Oshitari's back straightened and he felt himself go on the defensive. "Yeah... everything's fine." He left Atobe when he saw his captain start smirking.

Jirou ran to the park. He pulled out his phone and started walking trying to find the court Seigaku was playing on. He dialed the familiar name and waited until she picked up. "Hello?" Her voice touched his ears and instantly the dark feelings from before vanished and he smiled brightly.

"Hikari!" He said happily. "It's Jirou... What court is Seigaku playing?"

"Oh! Jirou!" He could practically hear the smile in her voice. "I think we're on court C... but the game's almost over. Do you want to meet me half way.?" She offered.

He frowned. "What about Fuji?"

"He didn't play." Jirou laughed because she sounded so annoyed. "They won the first three matches against Midoriyama." She was complaining now.

Jirou shook his head. "You don't want to see your cousin?"

He listened to her as she hummed in thought. "How about... I go talk to Syusuke until you get here then we can go somewhere else?"

Jirou smiled brightly. "Okay!" He said happily. "I'll be there shortly then. Bye."

"Bye!" She sang and hung up the phone.

"Who was that?" Hikari turned to Syusuke smiling at her.

"Jirou." She said with a bright smile, and Fuji frowned. Hikari raised an eyebrow. "Jealous?" She said with a smirk.

Fuji tried to keep a straight face, but failed and laughed. "Nah... just a little worried." He said. "I know... Jirou is a good guy." He said when he saw her frown. "Just be careful, okay?" Hikari nodded.

"Hikari-chan!" Eiji sang happily. "Did you see my match?"

Hikari smiled and nodded. "You played great. I'm still trying to figure out how you do all those flips and what not. Must be difficult."

Eiji slung his arm around her shoulder. "Not really, but it is a lot of fun."

"I can imagine." She said stepping away from him to unhook herself. She didn't want Jirou to get angry again. A soft smile reached her features at the thought of him.

Fuji looked up to see Jirou looking around. "Someone's prince just showed up." He commented and smirked when Hikari's head shot up and followed to where Fuji was looking.

Her face broke into a bright smile. "Jirou!" She called happily. He looked at her and waved. "Bye Syusuke, bye Kikumaru!" She jogged over to Jirou.

"Bye!" The two called. Eiji looked bummed. "Can't win everything Eiji." Fuji said with his usual smile.

"Yeah... I know..." They walked in the opposite direction.

Hikari smiled at Jirou. He looked out of breath. "Did you run here?" She raised an eyebrow.

He smiled sheepishly. "Well I was trying to get here before it ended, so I'm still a little out of breath..." He was suddenly overly embarrassed.

"Then let's go get a drink!" She pulled him to a vending machine and put enough money in for two.

"I can pay!" He said trying to give her money.

"It's fine." She smiled brightly. "You did run all the way here. What flavor would you like?"

He shrugged. "Whatever Hikari wants is fine!"

Hikari blushed slightly and pushed the button on the vending machine. "Here." She said hiding her face. She gave him a grape flavor drink. She figured it wasn't too sweet or too tart. "It's... grape." She sat on a bench.

"Thanks." He took a sip and sat down next to her. "So how were the games?" He asked.

She tilted her head to the side. "Kind of... boring..." She mumbled. She scrunched her face up in thought. "At least I got to talk to Syusuke though... So it makes up for it."

"It couldn't have been that bad." Jirou protested.

Hikari let out a small chuckle. "I like watching tennis, but after Seigaku played Hyotei, I had high expectations. AND" she continued. "Three matches played at once." She took a sip of her drink. "It was really annoying."

Jirou laughed. "Our match against Seigaku was _that_ good?"

Hikari nodded. "It was awesome..." She said staring off to space. She still remembered the happiness that showed on Jirou's face when he played. Another small smile appeared on her face.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked turning his body in her direction.

Hikari jumped and blushed darker. What was wrong with her? Spacing out randomly like that... "Uh... nothing!" She shouted and turned a shade darker when Jirou leaned forward and stared at her with a slight frown. "Nothing! I swear!" He smiled and leaned back. Hikari visibly relaxed. She was being way too self-conscious today. "I'm glad you were able to come today."

"Mm..." Jirou hummed in response. "Oh by the way Oshitari says hi." He said suddenly remembering his teammate.

Hikari laughed. "He's such a loser..." She mused aloud. She looked over to see his eyes heavy as he let out a yawn.

"Ah... sorry..." He mumbled rubbing his eyes.

Hikari giggled. "Here." She patted her lap. Jirou looked at her confused. "You look tired." She said with a small blush forming and staying on her face.

"Really?" Hikari nodded. Jirou shifted on the bench and laid down while using Hikari's lap as a pillow. "Thanks." He said closing his eyes.

Hikari watched him sleep with a small smile on her face. She couldn't stop thinking about how nice he was and how innocent he acted when he played tennis. It was... adorable. She blushed at the thought. She shook her head trying to clear it but she couldn't. She never thought it would be this easy to like someone... She bit her lip in embarrassment. _Thank goodness his eyes are closed._ She used her right hand to play absentmindedly with his hair. "Mm..." Hikari froze. Jirou opened one eye to look at her. "It tickles..."

"Sorry..." She pulled her hand away.

Jirou stopped her. "No... it... feels good." A blush formed on his face.

Hikari smiled. "Okay." She whispered and she continued to play with his hair. Eventually she could tell that he was really sleeping. His right hand slipped off his stomach and hung limply over the edge of the bench. His breathing was slow and even, and his mouth hung open ever so slightly. She felt so happy. Being with him made everything better. She bent down and kissed his forehead. "Thank you." She whispered. She didn't know why she did it, but it felt like she had to thank him for just being around her.

"Mm..." Jirou mumbled something incoherently causing Hikari to freeze. He shifted and turned his head toward her.

Hikari let out a shaky breath. Her face was bright red. _Oh my god... that scared me..._ she looked up at the sky and smiled. "Today was a good day..." She whispered.

* * *

Oh yeah! New Chapter! and this time it wasn't as long a wait as it usually is. OKay! So what do you guys think? Did I rush it too much? I felt like they needed a little push so I just went for it. Hahah I think it turned out pretty well, but technically it is your [the reader's] opinion that matters. Also thanks for the comments favorites and followingers. You guys are awesome.


	13. Watch Out For Hikari

Sleep, a solace to all mortals  
Sleep, to some so natural  
Sleep, to many so elusive  
Sleep, to some so simple  
Sleep, to some a real struggle  
Sleep, for some, bountiful to envy  
Sleep, for some, commodity to buy  
Sleep, in it some walk riskily  
Sleep, in it some talk profusely  
Sleep, a fight to all human beings  
Sleep, a basic necessity of life  
Sleep well, wake up refreshed,  
Step on to face daily challenges.

- Rangarajan Kazhiyur Mannar

* * *

"Why didn't she wake me up?" Hikari questioned angrily as she ran. "She _always_ wakes me up when I snooze my alarm!" Her breathing was labored. She stopped running in the courtyard to lean against one of the trees. She pulled out her phone and noticed she had ten minutes to spare. She sighed in relief. "Oh thank god..." She sighed. She continued to lean against it as the pain in her knee subsided. It still didn't feel well from running the other day. Adding more running to it only continued to prolong the healing process.

When she felt like she could move normally, she pushed away from the tree. She tidied up her skirt, blouse and tie. She retied her hair back into a ponytail and felt she was at least somewhat presentable. At least... as presentable as you could be with feeling sticky from sweating. "Okay." She said triumphantly and began to walk toward the building. Since she took the extra effort to get there on time, she might as well not dilly dally in the courtyard.

"Hey! Hikari!" Hikari turned to the voice, but was met with a splash of water. Though it was more than just a small splash. She was doused in water maybe it was a bucket's worth, maybe more, but it soaked her clothes and hair completely. She wiped the water from her eyes and looked for her assailant, but no one was there. Now she looked like she just jumped in a pool with her clothes on.

"Great..." She mumbled to herself. She didn't have any spare clothes. So she began walking toward the school again. _Think positively..._ she told herself. _At least your less sweaty now..._

"Hikari!" Hikari's face turned a slight shade of pink. That voice... She didn't want him to see her like this. She didn't turn toward him and tried to ignore him. She knew it was probably useless, but it was worth a shot. He jogged up to her and placed his hand on her shoulder, but pulled back quickly. He stared at his hand. "You're soaked..." Hikari felt her eyes roll slightly at the obvious statement, but she knew he had good intentions. He forced her to turn around and he saw her depressed face. "Who did this to you?" He questioned.

Hikari looked up at him and tried to give a genuine smile. "It's fine." She said waving a hand. "I didn't see them anyway." She had a feeling about who did it, but she wanted to pay as little attention to this whole situation as possible. She knew that if Jirou got involved, everything would get worse... especially for her.

Jirou frowned, but he had the feeling she wasn't going to say anything even if she did know. He moved some hair out of her face that was stuck to her face. She bit her lip. She wasn't expecting him to be so caring. Yes, she knew he liked her as a friend, but she had never had anyone besides her cousins be so gentle toward her. It took everything she had to keep her face from turning bright red. "Do you have any spare clothes...?" He asked.

Hikari shook her head. "No... but these clothes will dry eventually." She said trying to stay as positive as possible. She didn't want those girls to think that they won.

"I have an extra pair of gym clothes." He began. "You can ask the principal if you can wear them." He offered.

Hikari was so surprised that she laughed. She couldn't help it. Jirou was such a nice person. "That would be great." So the two of them ended up in front of the principal with Hikari explaining the situation, and every now and then Jirou would throw his own words in even though he wasn't there when it happened. "I can't believe she agreed." Hikari said once they closed the principal's office door and walked toward their lockers.

They stopped at Jirou's first. He opened it and took out a bag. He handed the clothes to her with a small smile. "I have to go to class." He looked at the two notes in his hands and then gave one to her. "This won't get you in trouble with your teacher for being late. Go get changed. I'll see you in class later." He offered her another smile.

"Okay." Hikari said with a smile as he turned to leave. "Thanks, Jirou." She called to him after a moment and he waved as he walked away.

Hikari quickly made her way to the closest bathroom. She changed her clothes into the ones Jirou had given her and tried to make herself look decent. As she straightened up her clothes, she realized that Jirou's last name was written on the sweatshirt. Her cheeks turned pink and she unconsciously pulled the shirt to her nose. It smelled like any guys clothes, but it made her feel safe. As she admired herself in the mirror, a thought popped into her head. This was going to make her a target. Instantly, her healthy looking cheeks turned a sickly pale green.

"You can do this." She told her reflection. "Don't be weak." She hoped the statements would actually help her get through. She had never actually been targeted before. She always had Syusuke and Yuuta to look after her when she was teased about her light colored hair, but this... this was different. When she felt like she wasn't going to be sick, she left the bathroom and stopped by her locker to get her books and drop off her clothes.

When Hikari walked into class, she immediately felt all eyes on her. She sat in her normal seat next to Oshitari, but she not amused when he chuckled under his breath. She knew it was because he saw the name that was stitched into the sweatshirt. "It's not funny." She whispered harshly. He simply continued smile, and Hikari glowered at the entertained look that twinkled in his eyes. But what really bothered her was what she couldn't see. It was like she could practically _feel_ the eyes of the girls in her class staring her down. _This day is going to be hell_, she thought as she tried to focus on class and the calming scent of Jirou's clothes.

When class was finally over, Hikari booked it out of her classroom. Oshitari almost had to sprint to catch up with her. "So are you going to explain to me why you are wearing Jirou's clothes?" He asked nudging her slightly as they made their way to the next class they had together.

Hikari shoved his arm away and smiled. "If you must know, a girl or few threw water on me this morning. Jirou gave me his spare gym uniform." She explained the rest of the story as they made their way down the stairs.

"Never thought Jirou could be so serious." Oshitari said, a look of surprise appearing on his face.

Hikari shrugged. "Neither did I." She said scratching the back of her neck in thought. As she looked up at Oshitari, someone pushed into her. Hikari lost her footing and began to fall down. Oshitari grabbed her arm, and pulled her against him so that she could get her balance. Oshitari looked back to see a couple girls looking angry and afraid, but they quickly ran away. "Thanks." She said as she steadied herself and smoothed out her clothes. Of course it didn't help much with how baggy they were so she just let them be. She saw Oshitari looking annoyed. "What's wrong?" It was rare to see him get agitated.

He raised his eyebrows. "Oh, nothing." He said quickly dismissing the subject. "Let's get to class." He continued walking and Hikari followed his lead. "Is there anyone else on the tennis team in your classes?" He questioned once they were close to their classroom.

"No..." She said. "Well... you are in my first two. And then there's no one until my last class with Jirou."

Oshitari nodded as they entered class just as the bell rang. Once again, Hikari could feel them staring her down. Every now and then, it was like a cold breeze blew by her causing her to shiver involuntarily. She was too headstrong for her own good. She knew this, but she was competitive. In her mind, this was like a tennis match, and she hated to lose. She was going to win. The thought helped her focus on her class and not her classmates and she was finally able to take proper notes.

After class, however, Oshitari pulled her aside. "I want you to be extra cautious today." Hikari's eyebrows rose at his demanding tone. He had never talked to her like that. "Okay?" He pressed when she didn't answer him.

Hikari frowned, but nodded anyway. "Sure..." She said. "I can try. I'll see you later." And with that, she walked off to her next class.

Oshitari took out his phone and texted the people on the team who had noticed Hikari at practice the week before. He wanted to make sure someone was at least looking out for her the rest of the day. There was something about those girls that made him worried. He looked back down at the message. It read, "Watch out for Hikari. I think she's being targeted." And this treatment was already worse than any other person he had seen before. The team knew about the group of girls that idolized them, but they couldn't do anything. Whenever a player became interested in a girl, she was targeted by the group. Usually, the girls were weak hearted and afraid of the girls that they left the player. However, Hikari was different from them. She was too headstrong and she would never give up a fight. This was going to get extremely ugly if it wasn't stopped. If it escalated too far, Oshitari would have to call on Atobe and he hoped that wouldn't be necessary.

* * *

**Hello everyone! Here is another little chapter for you to read. I shall begin working on the next one soon. My muses have returned to me and it feels wonderful. Especially since one is a do gooder and said I was being too mean to you all that like this story. So here is a chapter for you! I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I love to write Hikari's story. We thank you very much for your support and hope you will review the story when you get the chance!**


	14. Anything For A Friend

I dream of rainbows, Bright in the sky,  
I dream of lightning, together we cry,

I dream of flowers, I feel such delight,  
I dream of spiders, and I scream with fright,

I dream of fish, swimming in the sea,  
I dream of sharks, coming after me,

I dream of lambs, frolicking around,  
I dream of wolves, Hunting, no sound,

I dream of children, several of them ours,  
I dream of them waking, Being up for hours,

Stay with me forever and together we'll cope,  
Because when I dream of you, I dream of hope,

Dream awhile with me and together we'll see,  
Not all dreams are bad, so dream along with me.

- Cathryn Martin

* * *

Without Oshitari or Jirou around, Hikari felt almost naked. It was like her shield had suddenly gone missing. She knew now why Oshitari was being so serious. As she walked the halls, it was like all eyes were on her. Not just the usual people staring at her light hair, but it was like every single female of the school population was staring at her with accusing eyes. She should have known this was going to happen. She should have refused Jirou. Yelled at him even to keep his clothes. Because this was going to be worse than sitting in a classroom with wet clothes.

The target was bigger now. She knew it was. And as she made her way up the stairs to her third class of the day, she made sure to stay close to the railing because every now and then someone would shove into her. And every time someone would snicker.

She made it to the floor her class was on, and she wasn't afraid to admit that she was happy to be on flat ground. Of course that didn't stop the occasional shove or trip attempt. It was a good thing that she was light on her feet. After another attempt at being tripped, Hikari looked up to see Hiyoshi walking farther down the hall in her direction. She had never actually talked to the player, but she knew of him. Jirou had talked about him now and again when he talked about practice.

She wasn't sure if he knew anything about her, but she needed relief from the struggle she was in. She was no longer thinking long term. If she thought about, it would have been best to ignore the regular, but she wasn't sure how long her patience with this treatment would last. She made up her mind.

She sped up her walk. "Hiyoshi!" She called out.

The regular had been looking down at the ground and looked up. He noticed her right away. It was hard not to with that hair of hers. But he also remembered her at practice the one day when the Seigaku players had showed up at their practice. He knew she was friends with Oshitari and Jirou. And he assumed the text Oshitari sent was about her.

"Hello." He simply stated unsure of what to say to her when she stopped in front of her. However, the looks she was getting did not go unnoticed by the tennis player.

"Are you going to class?" She fidgeted with her clothes a little.

Hiyoshi noticed they belonged to Jirou. He nodded in response to her question. "You?" She nodded also. "Which way is your class?" She pointed in the direction he had just come from. He knew he would end up being late to to his own class, but he couldn't let her go about on her own. "I'll walk you."

Hikari's face and body visibly relaxed. "Thank you so much." She said a little lower so no one would hear her except him. They walked in the direction of her class in silence. It was slightly awkward. Hiyoshi was basically glaring at the people that even so much as glanced at her the wrong way. When they reached her class, Hikari bowed to Hiyoshi. "Thank you, again." She muttered.

Hiyoshi was going to answer, but when he looked up, something caught his eye. He lunged forward causing Hikari to jump since his hand flew right by her face. When he pulled his hand back it was covered in the yoke of a broken egg. Hikari's face dropped at the sight of it. Hiyoshi continued to glare at the people behind her. Part of her wanted to look back at who it was, but she didn't know it she would be able to control the anger that was slowly beginning to develop.

"You should go to class." Hiyoshi said. He looked down at his hand. "I need to go wash this off."

Hikari felt terrible. She did this to him. By letting him walk her to class... she did this. "I'm sorry."

Hiyoshi shrugged. "Just don't be weak." He stated and walked away.

Hikari walked into her classroom. She felt guilty. She should have dealt with the problem herself instead of pulling someone else in with her. She sat down and could practically feel her anger growing. It had been some time since she felt this irritated about something. She usually only got this bad when she was playing tennis. Whenever she felt threatened during a match, her competitiveness to win would take over. And she hated to lose and right now she felt like she was losing. Big time.

Through the whole class she was thinking about ways to possibly get even, but everything seemed to turn back against her. There was only one way that she could get away with it, but it was a little risky. If anything, she had no doubt that she could take care of herself. She was probably going to be stronger than any of the girls that hated her. And she knew, hands down, she could take Yumi on.

As she left her classroom it was lunch time and she was starving. The stress of the day caused her stomach to growl. As she approached her locker she noticed that it was slightly ajar. Her stomach dropped. "You have got to be kidding me..." She opened it expecting everything to be missing, but she was wrong. Everything was there. She looked over everything twice just in case she forgot about something. She sighed in relief. Her books were still there, and so were her clothes. She looked over her door. Maybe someone guessed her combination? Nothing was bent out of place. She sighed when she realized that she would have to go get her combination changed for her locker. And then that's when she noticed. Her lunchbox... it was gone. Her stomach growled in protest. "Of course... the day I don't bring any money with me..."

She didn't go to the cafeteria. If she did, it would just make her hungrier. So she made her way outside. Maybe if she enjoyed some fresh air and took a nap, she would forget about her hunger. Fat chance. She sat there under a tree and everything around her reminded her of food. She began to wonder if the grass and leaves were edible.

"Oh? Isn't it Hikari?" She looked up at the sound of her name. It was Gakuto. He was holding his lunch in his hands. Hikari's mouth watered and her stomach growled. She lowered her head in embarrassment. Gakuto laughed. "What? You forget to bring your lunch?"

Hikari frowned but quickly laughed. She rubbed the back of her neck. "Yeah... I uh must have left it at home."

Gakuto wasn't stupid. He knew what probably happened to her lunch, but he would feign innocent for her. He didn't want her to dwell on it. He pulled out some bread he bought a little earlier. He had seen her locker open and figured something bad had happened. The bread was just in case. If she had had her food, he would have just eaten it himself. "Here." He tossed her the bread and she caught it easily.

She stared at it. "Are you sure I can have this?" She asked. Gakuto nodded. "Thank you!" She said happily. She tore the package open and began stuffing her face.

Gakuto laughed. She was an interesting one. He sat down near her and continued eating his lunch. He would offer her little bits of his lunch so that she ate more than just bread. He would be fine for practice today. It was supposed to be very easy. In fact, the regulars technically didn't have to go. He just felt like it.

Hikari sat under the tree content. "You are a life saver." She smiled at him and offered him her hand. "My name's Fuji Hikari." She offered. "I don't think we've been formally introduced."

Gakuto smiled. "Mukahi Gakuto." He took her hand.

Eventually it was time for lunch to end. The two said their goodbyes and they went separate ways. Hikari had free period right after lunch. So instead of going back into the building to do homework like she had originally planned at the end of the day, she decided to stay away from the masses and stay outside. It was nice enough and she needed the fresh air.

As she wandered, however, she was not prepared to come across a large group of fangirls. They glared at her. This was what Hikari had been waiting for... wasn't it? So why did her throat go dry? Was it the sheer number of them. She didn't think she would go up against so many. Unfortunately, Hikari didn't see Yumi with them anywhere.

"We have something to discuss with you." A girl at the front declared.

Hikari just stared for a second. The only thought running through her head was: _Well of course you have something to talk to me about..._ But she answered like she had no idea what was going on. "What do you want to talk about?" Was it better to act dumb in this situation? Probably not, but it was too late now.

"You need to stay away from the tennis team!" A younger girl beside the first yelled. She looked like she had tears in her eyes. Hikari wanted to shake her to make her open her eyes. They were just teenage boys. It wasn't like they were famous or going to become famous. They were just _boys_.

"Relax, Emi." The first said.

The second, Emi, stared in shock. "But Hana..."

"I said Relax..."

Hikari's mind was still trying to process everything. She was smart, but this was hard. One wrong move could set them all off at the same time, and that... that would be bad. "Have I done something wrong?" She asked. Then decided to be a little braver. "I have a few friends that play on the tennis team."

She watched as everyone tensed. The one who remained cool and collected was Hana. If Hikari remembered correctly from rumors, Hana was Yumi's right hand man. No wonder she was so relaxed. "Yes..." Hana said slowly. "But you've become too close to Akutagawa Jirou-sama." She motioned to Hikari's clothes.

Hikari laughed. "Oh this?" She pulled at the baggy clothes. "Someone spilled water on me this morning and Jirou forced me to wear them so I wouldn't get sick. You should blame whoever threw the water on me for this." She noticed a few girls glower and others seemed to tense even more.

"You think this is a joke?" Hana asked raising her voice a little. "Jirou-sama belongs to everyone. The tennis team belongs to everyone. We've always been watching them! You can't just waltz in and take them from us!"

Hikari held in her smirk. If she could just get them to throw the first move. Then she could retaliate in self-defense. "The tennis team doesn't belong to anyone." Hikari stated in a matter-of-fact tone. "Maybe instead of idolizing them all the time, you should make conversation. Being friends with them instead of trying to threaten others who do."

That hit the nail of the head. Hana raised her head up to slap Hikari in the face. Hikari knew she could dodge it, but she needed physical evidence that she had been targeted. She could hear Emi encouraging Hana. Hikari closed her eyes and prepared for the hit when Hana's hand began to descend, but it never connected. Instead, Hikari heard a collective of gasps.

She opened her eyes to see Shishido and Ootori standing behind her. Shishido had a firm grip on Hana's wrist. "Is this any way to treat your classmate?" He asked almost coldly.

Ootori the always kind one seemed disappointed or almost angry at the group of girls. "I suggest you leave before I call a teacher." He threatened just as coolly. From what Hikari knew of him, he was usually an easy going underclassman. But at the word of Ootori, and the presence of Shishido, the group dispersed aside from Hana and Emi.

"Let go..." Hana struggled under his grip. Emi was too shocked to speak. She stared wide eyed at the two tennis players.

"I'll let go." He stated. "But only if you give me your word that you won't threaten Hikari again."

Hana practically growled. "Fine." She mumbled. Shishido let go and Hana nursed her sore wrist. The two girls quickly left like the others had.

"Are you okay?" Ootori asked in his usually calm tone. Hikari nodded. She was slightly surprised at the sudden appearance of the two players also. "Are you sure?"

Hikari shook her head and nodded again. "Yes." She stated. "Thank you..." She seemed to be doing that a lot today. "Where did you come from?"

Shishido spoke up. "We have free period so we were going to go to the tennis courts for a little."

"Then we saw you and decided to help." Ootori smiled sweetly. "I'm Ootori Choutarou." He held out his hand and Hikari shook it.

"Fuji Hikari."

She turned and took the other boy's hand. "Shishido Ryou."

"It's nice to meet the two of you." Hikari said with a smile. Though she was a little bummed that she didn't get to blow off some steam, she had to thank the two of them from keeping the situation under control. "Thank you... again. I really appreciate your help."

Ootori shrugged. "Anything for a friend." He explained. Hikari's heart skipped a beat. That word: Friend. It meant a lot to her. Growing up, it was always difficult to make friends because of her light hair. They teased her and pulled her hair a lot. To hear someone call her a friend made her want to jump for joy.

She smiled brightly at them. "May I accompany you to the courts?" She asked. "I love to watch tennis." They nodded and motioned for her to follow. The whole way there she rambled about how she saw them play a little at practice the one day, but explained that she had been watching Jirou and Oshitari's match the most. However, she did think the two of them held a lot of promise.

And so Hikari continued with her day. The only thing she could hope for was that the last half would be better than the first.

* * *

**Hello. Okay. I told marchmellowluver that this was going to get done by Sunday and I apologize that I'm late. So I made it longer than I had originally planned. (PS thanks for the review). ALSO a big thanks to babiix3, waterflygirl, sleeepymode for following the story! I hope that means you like it and Hikari and I thank you for your support.**


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